In a challenging tone that evokes the crude promises of the electoral campaign, the “tsar of the border” of the White House, T om Homan, reaffirmed that the Donald Trump administration is preparing for an unprecedented scale of migration operations.

Homan reported that about 7,000 new Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have already begun to be deployed in nearly 40 states and that another 3,000 are in training.

According to figures provided by the official, ICE currently makes about 1,200 arrests daily and over the last year detained more than half a million undocumented immigrants. Trump had promised during his campaign to reach one million deportations annually.

During his speech at the Border Security Exposure in Phoenix, Homan not only promised that “mass deportations” are a real ity imminent, but launched a direct warning to jurisdictions that refuse to cooperate: they will be “flooded” with federal agents.

Homan defended the immigration strategy of the Republican administration and rejected the criticisms coming even from conservative sectors linked to the MAGA movement, which consider the number of deportations carried out so far to be insufficient.

“They haven't seen anything yet,” the official stated before an audience composed of agents from the Department of National Security and security specialists. “Massive deportations are coming,” he added.

The so-called border czar argued that the federal government is preparing to significantly increase detentions and expulsions of undocumented immigrants, while illegal crossings at the southern border decrease.

The White House toughens the immigration discourse after months of controversies

Homan's statements occur at a delicate moment for the federal government's migration policy, after several alt operations or profile carried out in cities such as Chicago, Minneapolis and Los Angeles that caused protests and strong criticism from civil organizations.

The tension increased especially after two U.S. citizens died during confrontations related to immigration raids in Minneapolis, facts that raised questions about the use of force in federal operations.

After those incidents, the Trump administration attempted to publicly moderate the tone of its immigration strategy. White House officials recommended focusing the message in the deportation of people with criminal backgrounds and threats to public security, avoiding insisting on the concept of “mass deportations”.

However, Homan made it clear that the policy will not be limited solely to immigrants with criminal histories. “I don't care how long they've been here.” "They entered illegally, they violated the law," declared the official, who acknowledged that between 35% and 40% of the arrested people do not have criminal records.

The advisor maintained that detentions of immigrants without criminal records are part of a strategy to send “a message to the rest of the world.”

ICE will increase operations in sanctuary states

Homan also issued direct warnings against states and cities that have passed laws to limit collaboration between local police and federal immigration authorities.

“We are going to flood the area,” he said when referring to future ICE operations in jurisdictions considered “sanctuary”.

The official warned that the increase of agents will also cause more collateral arrests, that is, people who were not specific targets of the raids, but who are detained during the operations.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul publicly rejected the possibility of a massive expansion of immigration agents in her state and criticized the federal approach.

Meanwhile, the White House continues adjusting its immigration strategy in the face of legislative elections, in a context where immigration policies remain one of the most polarizing issues in the United States.

Homan, for his part, assured that he will maintain his stance despite the criticism. “I don't care what people think of me,” he said. “I'm going to continue doing this until my last breath.”