Trump Expands Expedited Deportations Nationwide, Targeting Unauthorized Immigrants Across the U.S.

Trump Administration Expands Expedited Deportations Nationwide

The Trump administration has dramatically expanded the scope of expedited deportations, enacting a nationwide expansion of an immigration policy known as "expedited removal." This policy allows U.S. immigration officials to deport migrants who lack proper documents through a streamlined process that bypasses the lengthy and massively backlogged immigration court system.

Previously, expedited removal was limited to areas close to U.S. borders and only applied to unauthorized immigrants detained within 100 miles of an international border who had been in the U.S. for less than two weeks. However, the new policy expands expedited deportations to unauthorized immigrants anywhere in the U.S. who can't prove they have been in the country for more than two years.

This move by the Department of Homeland Security revives a policy first implemented by the Trump administration and later discontinued by the Biden administration. It took effect at 6 p.m. Eastern Time on Tuesday.

The expansion of expedited deportations is part of a broader crackdown on immigration initiated by President Trump since returning to office. Other actions include shutting down access to the U.S. asylum system, declaring a national emergency to dispatch more troops to the southern border, freezing the refugee admissions programs, and directing federal agencies to deny birthright citizenship to the children of immigrants living in the U.S. illegally or on temporary visas.

The president has also laid the groundwork for mass deportations by directing federal officials to expand immigration detention facilities and allowing local law enforcement authorities to arrest and detain unauthorized immigrants. His administration has also rescinded Biden-era guidelines that barred deportation officers from making arrests at "sensitive locations" such as schools and churches.

Democratic-led cities with "sanctuary" policies that limit cooperation with federal immigration agencies are bracing for an increase in federal operations targeting unauthorized immigrants in their communities. Trump administration officials have said that while those with criminal histories will be prioritized for arrest, unauthorized immigrants with clean records are also at risk of being detained, marking a significant shift from Biden administration policy.