Trump Administration Plans to Deport Up to a Million Migrants in a Year: The Washington Post
For data The Washington Post, US President Donald Trump’s administration is developing a massive plan to deport up to one million immigrants within a year. If implemented, it would be the largest forced eviction operation in modern US history.
The reporters cited sources in the White House and federal agencies who confirmed that senior officials, including adviser Stephen Miller, are coordinating daily on the strategy with representatives of the Department of Homeland Security. The main task is to create a mechanism for quick deportation, with minimal legal resistance, primarily for those who already have a final decision on deportation, but have not yet been deported.
This includes, in particular, more than 1.4 million migrants for whom there are court orders for removal, but whose countries of origin refuse to take them back. The Trump administration is currently negotiating with more than 30 countries to accept such individuals — even if they are not their citizens. Some of those detained have already been sent to countries such as Mexico, Panama, Costa Rica, and most recently Rwanda, after lengthy negotiations.
Examples of the transfer of detainees to detention centers in El Salvador and to the US Navy base in Guantanamo gained special attention. Yet even these demonstrative actions cover only a tiny fraction of the more than 11 million people currently in the US without legal status.
Officially, representatives of the White House avoid confirmation of quantitative guidelines. However, Deputy Press Secretary Kush Desai emphasized that the administration is acting in accordance with the will of the voters, who gave Trump a mandate to “resolutely correct the failures of Biden’s migration policy.” He added that the deportation of “criminal illegals and potential terrorists” will be carried out at the national level according to uniform standards.
Despite the ambitious claims, analysts and former government officials point to numerous obstacles. Financial constraints, staff shortages, and legal procedures that deny most migrants the right to a full court hearing make such a plan much more difficult to implement. Court proceedings can drag on for years due to an overburdened immigration system.
For comparison: the highest level of deportations in the US was recorded under President Obama, when approximately 400,000 people were deported each year. Trump’s goal of twice that amount is currently without any historical precedent.
It will be recalled that earlier the Trump administration revoked the temporary legal status of more than 530,000 citizens of Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua and Haiti, which made many of them vulnerable to immediate deportation. This decision, as well as the general tone of the new policy, indicates a tough course on mass deportations and increased border control, which became one of the main slogans of Trump’s election campaign.
