Trump unleashes a decades-in-the-making immigration war

President Trump undoubtedly stands on strong political ground, backed by most Americans, in cases where he's deporting convicted criminals.Now comes a new test, literally 40 years in the making: How comfortable are Americans with deporting millions of immigrants who paid taxes, built families and committed no crimes after coming here illegally?Why it matters: That's the heart of the standoff in LA, as well as the broader Trump effort to expel potentially millions of immigrants who broke the law to get here and then played by U.S. rules."I said it from Day 1: If you're in the country illegally, you're not off the table," Tom Homan, Trump's border czar, told the N.Y. Times. "So, we're opening that aperture up."The backstory: Congress, going back to 1986, has sought and failed to find a pathway to citizenship for those who fit the precise description above. Many current GOP senators were among those seeking said solution.But concerns about border security and rewarding illegal behavior killed every effort. Now, Trump, Republicans, some Democrats and much of the U.S. public are supportive of mass deportation instead.An estimated 14 million unauthorized immigrants live here — many of them working and paying taxes. They often fill jobs other Americans won't do — hotels, construction sites, landscaping and child care. Expelling them would sink some businesses, slow services in many communities, and hit close to home for lots of U.S. citizens.Will public enthusiasm wane when this reality becomes clear?Trump and White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller are pushing to hit a target of 3,000 immigration arrests a day, as first reported by Axios' Brittany Gibson and Stef Kight.That's triple the number of daily arrests that agents were making in the early days of Trump's term, Axios found.The only way to pull that off is by casting wider nets beyond convicted criminals to larger worksites. So raids could rise sharply at factories, restaurants and Home Depots, where people living here illegally often gather to seek day labor on job sites."Wait till you find out how many trillions we have to spend on illegal aliens," Miller wrote Tuesday in reply to a tweet by California Gov. Gavin Newsom about a Pentagon estimate that the National Guard deployment in LA will cost $134 million and last 60 days.The big picture: Accelerated deportations are a top personal priority for Trump, who relishes visibility for the raids. Amid the unrest in LA on Monday, Miller posted on X: "You can have all the other plans and budgets you want. If you don't fix migration, then nothing else can be fixed — or saved."White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson told us: "If you are present in the United States illegally, you will be deported. This is the promise President Trump made to the American people and the Administration is committed to keeping it." A CBS News/YouGov poll taken last week showed 54% approval of the Trump administration's program to deport immigrants illegally in the U.S. White House communications director Steven Cheung tweeted that finding and added: "And the approval number will be even higher after the national guard was sent to LA to beat back the violence this weekend."And MAGA media is egging the president on. Charlie Kirk, one of the most influential pro-Trump podcasters, tweeted Tuesday: "President Trump is getting more popular. Deportations are popular. We need more. ... America is demanding mass deportations." Asked for comment for this column, the Department of Homeland Security pointed us to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection's "CBP Home" app, which lets aliens notify the government of their intent to leave the country. "Tap 'Departing Traveler' to begin," the instructions say."We are offering those in this country $1,000 and a free flight to leave the country and preserve the potential to return the right, legal way," DHS assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin told us.Under current law, those taking that option will be barred from coming back for either three or 10 years, or permanently, depending on how long they've been in the U.S. illegally.How it works: It's important to understand how people pay taxes even though they're here illegally:In 1996, the U.S. government created an alternative to the Social Security number for undocumented immigrants — the individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN). This allows people to pay taxes while being here illegally and awaiting a path to citizenship.Those people have been paying taxes, believing it would enhance their chances of getting citizenship. A portion of those taxes helps fund Social Security. Under that law, if they eventually get citizenship, those taxes will count toward their retirement.The amounts are substantial. Undocumented immigrants paid $96.7 billion in federal, state and local taxes in 2022, according to a tally by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. More than a third of what they pay funds programs they can't even access.Now, those ITIN numbers could be used to track people down. Deportation fears triggered a decline in tax filings this year in some immigrant communities in the D.C. suburbs, the Washington Post found.That sets the stage for a humanitarian showdown unlike any witnessed in U.S. history: Trump is willing to use the U.S. military inside America to protect U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during roundups.The bottom line: There's no clear mechanism to differentiate between someone who came here recently alone versus a father of three, whose wife and children are living here legally, and have been here paying taxes and committing no crimes for a decade. In the eyes of the current law, illegal is illegal.When TV explodes with images of burning cars and lawlessness, Trump wins. But what about families torn apart or longtime neighbors yanked from their homes and taken away in handcuffs? That's when America's rawest views of immigration will be revealed.Go deeper: "Republicans warn Trump that some deportations go too far," by Hans Nichols and Andrew Solender.

Comments

World news

Budget airline to close after 20 years with more than 500 staff to lose jobs

Express

Comments

Similar News

With Trump as ally, El Salvador's President ramps up crackdown on dissent

An immigrant in Wisconsin has been released on bond after false accusation he threatened Trump

Trump to merge wildland firefighting forces, despite warning of chaos

Trump signs bill blocking California gas car ban plan

Trump's tariff uncertainty looms over G7 summit

Trump may get more than he bargained for by picking a fight with Los Angeles

Is Trump Politicizing the Military?

Democrats challenge Trump on immigration enforcement

Trump vowed to make the world safer - has he?

Trump warns Israel could strike Iran; U.S. officials say no military support

Donald Trump’s Dictator Cosplay

Donald Trump faces huge birthday blow as safety fears erupt

Trump’s policies could have a major impact on your credit score. Here’s how

Trump team sends removal notices to more than half a million migrants allowed into the country under Biden program

Trump promises farmers "changes are coming" to immigration crackdown

Trump warns a strike on Iran 'could very well happen' if no nuclear deal is signed

POLL: Do you think Donald Trump is still doing a good job?

Trump insists ‘not a king at all’ as he’s pressed on abuse of power concerns over tank-adorned DC birthday parade

Thunderstorms could dampen Trump’s big birthday parade and may even lead to its cancelation

Marjorie Taylor Greene rips Trump Mideast policy saying ‘Americans don’t want to bomb Iran’ for Israel

World news

Budget airline to close after 20 years with more than 500 staff to lose jobs

Air India survivor's chilling three-word statement on exactly what happened before crash

Donald Trump declares 'no fat soldiers' in scathing military speech

Israel's Iran strikes kill top nuclear scientists and top generals as Netanyahu risks WW3

'I flew Boeing planes for 40 years - why Air India tragedy was bound to happen'

US will help to defend Israel ‘if needed,’ Trump confirms to Fox News after warning Netanyahu against bombing Iran

Police accused of misusing license plate data in hunt for woman who had abortion

Moment scores of planes divert across Middle East as Israel launch strike on Iran

US has contingency plans to invade Greenland and Panama, Hegseth reveals

'I am thankful to God': Woman tells how she missed doomed Air India jet by 10 minutes because of bad traffic

South African president to visit flood sites with death toll at 78

Sole survivor reveals what happens in final seconds before Air India plane crashed

Passenger on Air India plane before it crashed shares video showing worrying defects

I’m an addiction specialist – I lost eight stone after I stopped calorie-counting

Why Reform’s splits over religion are a ‘real danger’ to Farage’s push for No 10

Private schools lose High Court challenge over Government’s VAT on fees policy

Israel defied Trump and chose to act now

The only trade certainty is uncertainty

RFK Jr. blows up America's vaccine policy

Israel's strike on Iran was 8 months in the making

Padilla episode triggers five-alarm fire for Democrats

The Elon Musk DOGE legacy that just won't die

All the possible Air India crash causes - from engine failure to pilot error

Bride in Air India crash was flying to meet husband for first time since wedding

Air India flight forced into emergency landing hours after disaster crash kills over 240

Air India plane crash survivor 'keen to talk' in hospital bed after meeting PM

Why Israel launched mega Iran attack as WW3 fears grow over nuclear plans

Air India crash survivor watched air hostess and other passengers die in front of him

Air India crash: I’m a crash expert - this is my theory how seat 11A helped Brit survive

Air India plane makes emergency landing just one day after Ahmedabad crash

Starmer calls for de-escalation after Israel attacks Iran in overnight strikes

Former NFL star Antonio Brown wanted by Miami police on attempted murder charges

What nuclear sites does Iran have and where are they?

'It's unacceptable': Brother of Jagmeet Singh says Canadians warned about risk to their life deserve protection

Air India crash: Search for second black box continues after PM visits wreckage site

Warning Boeing whistleblower made last year resurfaces after Air India crash

Brace yourself - impact of Israel's strike on Iran will be felt worldwide

What you need to know as Israel launches strikes against Iran

Consequences of Israel's strike on Iran could be massive

Influencer stabbed to death in shopping centre 'by cleaner who felt rejected'

Dad killed in Air India crash while scattering wife's ashes leaving 2 little girls orphaned

Israel Attacks Iran

Grieving Relatives of India Air Crash Victims Wait for Bodies to Be Identified

Residents of Tehran Awake to Devastation

West urged to grasp 'last opportunity' to stop Iran making nuclear bomb

Air India: Chilling final message sent by pilots moments before flight crashed

Israel attacks Iran: Tehran rocked by strikes in escalation of tensions

British victims of Air India crash named with fears death toll could rise

British wellness couple posted ‘Goodbye India’ video from airport before fatal Air India plane crash

Israel-Iran strikes latest: Tehran retaliates with massive drone attack after Israel targets nuclear sites

'Dangerous moment' as Israel launches major attack on Iran's nuclear sites and missile facilities

Pope Leo XIV's fashion choices make waves, and many wonder what they mean

Air India crash: Search for black boxes continues after PM visits wreckage site

Woman ‘numb’ after missing deadly Air India flight by 10 minutes

Sian Gibson: ‘I’m in crisis about turning 50. I want my 25-year-old body back’

The seven systems of Thomas Frank – and the one he should use at Spurs

I quit finance and took a 75% pay cut to run a bookshop – I’m so much happier