The Trump administration has set a quota demanding at least 1,800 daily arrests by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), requiring each of the agency’s 25 offices to make a minimum of 75 arrests per day, according to multiple sources. ICE has already conducted over 4,500 arrests since Trump’s return to office, targeting major sanctuary cities such as New York, Denver, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Boston.
White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller confirmed the quota during a CNN appearance, emphasizing, “The numbers you cited are a floor, not a ceiling. The goal is to arrest at least that many, but hopefully many more.” The Washington Post reports that officials now expect ICE to make between 1,200 and 1,500 arrests daily across the country.
An ICE official stated the agency possesses an extensive list of criminal illegal immigrants, which simplifies the task of meeting quotas. Acting Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem participated in pre-dawn operations alongside ICE, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents on Tuesday. These raids, including one in New York, resulted in the arrest of Anderson Zambrano-Pacheco, an alleged Tren de Aragua gang ringleader, who was apprehended in The Bronx near PS 11, the Highbridge School.
Trump’s Border Czar Tom Homan, who joined a raid in Chicago over the weekend, stated that ICE is focusing on apprehending illegal migrants with criminal records deemed threats to public safety. “I think the president’s happy, but we’re going to make him a lot happier,” Homan told Fox News. “We’re not gonna let up. We’re gonna put our foot on the gas and we’re gonna go.”
ICE has yet to comment on the quotas or the ongoing operations. The administration’s push underscores its intensified immigration enforcement agenda.