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Trump campaigned on the promise of carrying out the largest mass deportation of illegal immigrants in US history. His arrival in the White House will be dogged by abortion rights and immigration.
US President-elect Donald Trump (Image: Reuters)
The US is gearing up for the inauguration ceremony of President-elect Donald Trump, who will be sworn in as the 47th President of the United States on Monday (January 20). Trump, who has a long list of priorities from the moment he enters the White House, will begin with a large immigration raid in Chicago on the following day.
Trump had run for the White House on a bold promise of carrying out the largest mass deportation of illegal immigrants in US history. A day after he is inaugurated, Trump’s administration is planning a large-scale immigration raid in Chicago, four people familiar with the planning told the Wall Street Journal.
The Trump team intends to target immigrants in the country illegally with criminal backgrounds, many of whose offences like driving violations made them too minor for the Biden administration. Illegal immigratin was one of the biggest hot-button issues in the run-up to the presidential elections, due to a surge in illegal border crossings.
Why Chicago?
A source said the crackdown on illegal immigration would not be limited to only Chicago, but would extend to other cities. The transition team had been contemplating cities to target day-one operation as a way of making an example of so-called “sanctuary sites” – which adopt policies limiting cooperation with federal immigration officials.
However, the team settled on Chicago because of the large number of immigrants who could be possible targets but also because Trump’s feud with the Democratic Mayor Brandon Johnson. It is not clear how many people would participate in the raid.
Tom Homan, the Trump administration’s incoming border raids, had seemingly previewed the operation during a visit to Chicago last month. “We’re going to start right here in Chicago, Illinois. And if the Chicago mayor doesn’t want to help, he can step aside,” Homan said, while threatening to prosecute Johnson if he impedes the process.
Which Cities Would Be Targeted?
Large immigrant centres, such as Los Angeles, Denver, New York and Miami are also within the sights of the incoming administration. Trump’s team is weighing a broad mix of changes to help carry out these raids – including giving more power to sheriffs and financial penalties for those who hold out.
Economists and business leaders say deportations on the scale Trump has suggested would critically impact the economy, hitting critical industries with labour shortages. Interestingly, US deported the highest number of immigrants last year under Joe Biden, surpassing Trump’s record, according to BBC.
More than 271,000 immigrants were deported from the US over the last fiscal year, according to a report released by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The number of migrant encounters along the US-Mexico border reached a record high in December 2023, but have dropped significantly to their lowest levels since 2020.
Donald Trump will return to Washington on Saturday to kickoff events to herald his second inauguration as president, four years after he departed the city under the shadow of an attack by his supporters on the US Capitol.
After Trump takes the oath of office and delivers his inaugural address, there will be a ceremonial farewell to Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. As the new Republican government takes power, Trump will head to a signing ceremony at the Capitol to approve some of his first official acts, followed by a congressional luncheon and review of US troops.
The incoming administration plans to intensify immigration enforcement nationwide soon after he takes office on Monday, a person with knowledge of the plans told Reuters. “We are going to be doing operations all across the country… You are going to see arrests in New York. You are going to see arrests in Miami,” the source said.
Trump is expected to mobilise agencies across the US government to help him deport record numbers of immigrants, building on efforts in his first term to tap all available resources and pressure so-called “sanctuary” jurisdictions to cooperate.
(with inputs from agencies)
- Location :
Washington D.C., United States of America (USA)
