Some illegal immigrants self-deport as US immigration officers begin hunt

Given Donald Trump’s antecedent from his previous tenure, coupled with his mass deportation promises during his campaign, undocumented immigrants have started leaving the USA. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security estimates that 11 million immigrants were illegally living in the U.S. as of 2022, the latest statistics available. While campaigning, Trump talked about creating “the largest mass deportation program in history” and called for using the National Guard and domestic police forces in the effort. According to reports, many migrants are perturbed about being deported. Still, some are also convinced that Trump will only go after criminals and the people who have a final order of removal first. Another set has decided not to experience the mass deportations as they self-deport themselves and their families before ICR police come knocking. Videos showing heavy traffic along the US- Mexico border sparked debate online as netizens discussed the implications of Trump’s mass deportations. Advocates and immigration experts who have noticed such departures say undocumented migrants’ decision to leave the U.S. shows how uncertainty and threats have led a growing number of people to leave after Trump assumed office on Monday. There is no data on these departures, but history has seen other eras of public backlash that drove migrants—with or without legal status—out. Trump and his allies are counting on this “self-deportation,” the idea that life can be made unbearable enough to make people leave. Trump gives ATF, DEA and Marshals new powers to arrest and deport illegal migrants President Trump has enlisted additional federal agencies to assist Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in locating and deporting undocumented immigrants in the United States. According to the Wall Street Journal, the administration has authorized the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and the U.S. Marshals Service to conduct immigration arrests and oversee deportation procedures.