
President Donald Trump’s administration has taken decisive action to bolster immigration enforcement by authorizing multiple federal agencies to assist in locating and detaining illegal immigrants. The Department of Homeland Security, under acting Secretary Benjamine Huffman, issued a directive granting immigration enforcement authority to several federal law enforcement agencies.
The order extends immigration duties to officers from the U.S. Marshals, Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Bureau of Prisons. These agencies will now be able to help identify and apprehend individuals residing in the country illegally, an effort aimed at fulfilling Trump’s promise to ramp up deportations.
Is this a much better use of @ATFHQ agents?@realDonaldTrump is trying to amass a larger force of law-enforcement officials to carry out deportations by granting agents across the federal government the same powers as immigration officershttps://t.co/GC35Igvek7
— John R Lott Jr. (@JohnRLottJr) January 23, 2025
Huffman emphasized that this directive addresses the lack of resources that have hindered enforcement efforts in the past. She stated that mobilizing additional law enforcement personnel will enhance the administration’s ability to handle the ongoing border crisis and target individuals who have entered the country unlawfully.
The Trump administration has authorized the DEA, ATF and the US Marshals to begin making immigration arrests and processing deportations, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal.
The move gives those federal agents the same authority as those with Homeland Security… pic.twitter.com/nmYYQHgAdT
— Crime In NYC (@CrimeInNYC) January 24, 2025
With the addition of these federal agencies, the total number of personnel involved in immigration enforcement has grown by approximately 31,000 officers, significantly boosting the workforce of Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which together have about 40,000 agents.
🚨 BREAKING:
President Trump has now given the ATF, DEA, and U.S. Marshals Service the ability to arrest illegals, per WSJ..
This instantly added almost TEN THOUSAND new federal agents to the deportation squad…
They’re ALL going back ! pic.twitter.com/eJRRoQitdK
— Viktorija (@TrumpGirl44) January 25, 2025
Since the directive was issued, immigration officers have conducted targeted operations in multiple cities, resulting in hundreds of arrests. Among those detained were individuals with criminal records, including members of violent gangs such as Tren de Aragua.
Trump grants deportation powers to ATF, DEA, and U.S. Marshals! 🇺🇸 Agencies tackling drugs and weapons now stepping into immigration enforcement. The border fight just leveled up. pic.twitter.com/Aa2HxECT3r
— TexanonX™ (@TexanonX) January 23, 2025
The expanded enforcement effort follows the administration’s decision to eliminate policies that previously allowed illegal immigrants to remain in the country while awaiting court proceedings.
🚨Update: Trump empowers all Justice Department agents to deport illegal migrants — WSJ. The newspaper noted that DEA and ATF employees had not been involved in immigration enforcement, except where there are gun-related or drug-trafficking crimes!! pic.twitter.com/dSr4bu8OqB
— US Homeland Security News (@defense_civil25) January 23, 2025