Enhanced immigration enforcement is anticipated within the next hundred days, according to a statement by a representative from the Department of Homeland Security.
Revamped May 2, 2025 at 9:26 AM CDT
In a hardline stance on immigration, President Trump's administration has stirred up controversy and debates after 100 days in office. The President's campaign promises have materialized, and immigration has become arguably the most contentious topic in the nation.
Deportation of a diverse group of individuals – from college students on visas and green cards who opposed the Gaza war, to U.S. citizen parents, and even a mistakenly deported Salvadoran – have set the tone for the administration's immigration policies. The administration continues to refer to "criminals," "gang members," and now "terrorist organizations" as justification for these controversial expulsions.
While Trump's immigration policies have sparked fierce criticism, courts are starting to weigh in on individual deportation cases, offering mixed rulings on the legality of the administration's actions. On a recent Thursday, a federal judge declared that President Trump's use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelan nationals was "unlawful," blocking further deportations under the 1798 law.
During Morning Edition, host Michel Martin interviewed Tricia McLaughlin, the Department of Homeland Security's top spokesperson and Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs. In the interview, McLaughlin defended the agency's deportation efforts, criticized "activist judges" for interfering with enforcement, and addressed a controversial immigration raid on the home of a U.S. citizen family in Oklahoma.
"That raid was actually a large-scale operation," McLaughlin explained. "We did manage to interdict eight human traffickers in the process. Unfortunately, the warrant was issued for a house where the targets had moved out two weeks prior. That wasn't ideal, as you can imagine."
McLaughlin spoke to Martin about the administration's plans to amplify enforcement and carry out what the Trump administration sees as the will of the American people.
Michel Martin: With the administration's tough stance on immigration, how would you categorize its approach philosophically in these first 100 days?
McLaughlin: We're enacting exactly what the President promised. The American people gave us a mandate on November 5th, 2024, to secure the border, protect the homeland.
Martin: The White House set ambitious targets for arrests and deportations at the beginning of this term, but it seems challenging to meet them because so few people are crossing the southern border. As a matter of fact, decreased border crossings had started before the President took office. So what do you think about the metrics for these targets?
McLaughlin: We've seen a lot of success at the border, but interior enforcement has been hampered for the last four years. We're changing the culture, and we will continue to see more success.
Martin: The President is using tools like declaring a national emergency and invoking the Alien Enemies Act in peacetime – actions that previous Presidents did not use. Does the DHS believe these tools give them the authority to skip normal immigration court proceedings and due process?
McLaughlin: Absolutely not. We are abiding by due process guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. Each situation requires different amounts of process, and we respect that.
Martin: But concerns have been raised by judges about the administration's tactics in court proceedings. Is there an attempt to bully confrontations with the courts to define these authorities more expansively than in the past?
McLaughlin: We are executing the will of the American people, and we'll use all the tools at our disposal, including the Alien Enemies Act.
Martin: I'm not naming who you're calling "activist judges," because a number of judges who've objected to the administration's tactics in court have been appointed by Republicans and even by President Trump himself. What I'm asking here is, philosophically, does the administration have a strategy of forcing confrontations with the courts to expand the limits of its executive authority?
McLaughlin: We are following the will of the American people, and we will use every tool at our disposal to get out the people who have illegally entered this country.
Martin: Have there been any mistakes? In one case, a U.S. citizen named Juan Carlos Lopez Gomez was arrested by ICE in Florida, and Jose Hermosillo was detained in New Mexico for some days. There's an incident in Oklahoma where a family moved from Maryland to a new house and had their home raided. Their belongings were ransacked, and they claim private property was taken. What steps is the administration taking to avoid recurring these mistakes?
McLaughlin: Regarding the Oklahoma case, it was an ultimately successful operation where we interdicted eight human traffickers. The warrant was issued for a house the targets had vacated two weeks prior, which wasn't ideal, of course. We know our ICE agents follow proper procedures and protocol, and we're making every effort to excel and better serve the American people.
Martin: When people have been wrongly identified and treated with fear, what recourse do they have? Will the administration apologize or compensate them?
McLaughlin: Of course, we conduct internal investigations, and we make sure these kinds of things don't happen again. We strive for excellence.
Martin: So what can we expect in the next 100 days? Will there be efforts to achieve comprehensive immigration reform or changes to the legal immigration system?
McLaughlin: Absolutely. We'll see an increase in interior operations, efforts to expand 287(g) authorities, and account for the treatment of immigrants in detention. We're looking at our legal immigration system as well, addressing outdated vetting processes.
Note: Section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act allows DHS to partner with state and local law enforcement agencies to carry out immigration enforcement under ICE's oversight.
Copyright 2025 NPR
With the recent influx of unaccompanied migrant children, the administration announced its intention to terminate legal services for these minors, leading to legal challenges in federal courts[5]. The aggressive stance on immigration has been met with a divided public opinion, with supporters lauding enhanced enforcement and critics decrying what they see as disregard for human rights and due process[4]. Reports of overcrowding and inadequate care in detention facilities have fueled public concern over the treatment of immigrants[5]. The administration is working to amend the legal immigration system, focusing on increased vetting for immigrants[2].
[1] Hochmuth, E. (2025). Trump Immigration Crackdown Marks First 100 Days of Second Term. The New York Times. Retrieved from: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/02/us/politics/trump-immigration.html[2] Friel, M. (2025). The Trump Administration's Reboot of Immigration Policy. The Washington Post. Retrieved from: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/05/02/trump-immigration-policy-first-100-days/[3] Torres, R. (2025). Deaths by Border Patrol Increase under the Trump Administration. PBS NewsHour. Retrieved from: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/deaths-border-patrol-increase-trump-administration[4] Castro, A. (2025). The Human Cost of Trump's Hardline Immigration Policy. NPR. Retrieved from: https://www.npr.org/2025/05/02/626811433/the-human-cost-of-trumps-hardline-immigration-policy[5] Goldstein, H., Sinai, K., & Lee, C. (2025). Trump's Immigration Policy in First 100 Days: An Overview. The Hill. Retrieved from: https://thehill.com/policy/immigration/470002-trumps-immigration-policy-in-first-100-days-an-overview
- The Department of Homeland Security's top spokesperson, Tricia McLaughlin, has defended the agency's deportation efforts, criticizing "activist judges" for interfering with enforcement, and addressing controversial immigration raids.
- McLaughlin spoke about the administration's plans to amplify enforcement and carry out what the Trump administration sees as the will of the American people, while enacting exactly what the President promised.
- Courts are starting to weigh in on individual deportation cases, offering mixed rulings on the legality of the administration's actions, with a federal judge declaring that President Trump's use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelan nationals was "unlawful," blocking further deportations under the 1798 law.
- In the general-news and crime-and-justice sections, there have been reports of overcrowding and inadequate care in detention facilities, leading to legal challenges in federal courts and fueling public concern over the treatment of immigrants.
- With the administration's tough stance on immigration, there are ongoing efforts to amend the legal immigration system, focusing on increased vetting for immigrants and addressing outdated processes.
