ICE tactics under fire as its clout swells

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President Trump’s vow to conduct mass deportations recently gained altitude from Congress, the Supreme Court and his most conservative supporters. 

With the imminent arrival of a significant hike in federal funding, thanks to the July 4 enactment of the “big, beautiful bill,” and the high court’s ruling last month that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) can swiftly deport migrants to locations outside their native countries, the administration promises a far larger ICE force as its tactics draw scrutiny.

Public approval for hard-line immigration policies has fallen in the past year, polling shows, with Gallup reporting recently that the shifting views have come amid illegal border crossings dropping sharply this year. 

The share of those surveyed by Gallup who want to see immigration reduced has fallen from 55 percent in 2024 to 30 percent now. Seventy-nine percent of surveyed U.S. adults say immigration is a good thing for the country — a record high, Gallup reports, citing its June survey.

The president and White House border czar Tom Homan say they want to increase the number of deportations of migrants and “criminals,” while farmers, small business owners and hospitality CEOs are lobbying Trump to pull back on the sweeps by masked ICE agents who are deporting their workers. 

Referring to himself in the third person, Trump’s border czar promised a Turning Point USA Student Action Summit audience in Tampa on Saturday, “Tom Homan is going to run the biggest deportation operation this country has ever seen. Take it to the bank.” 

Homan attempted Sunday on CNN to clarify comments he made Friday about the grounds ICE agents can use to make arrests, which were criticized as defending racial profiling. Physical appearance “can’t be the sole reason to raise reasonable suspicion,” he told CNN, but he said immigration agents can detain people “based on their location, their occupation” and “their physical appearance.”  

Federal agents have been accused by immigration lawyers of making arrests of men who look foreign or Latino and asking evidentiary questions later. If an ICE agent observed someone with a suspected MS-13 tattoo, Homan told CNN, it “may be one factor to add to other factors to raise reasonable suspicion.” 

Trump’s immigration efforts will soon gain $170 billion in additional border security resources from the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” the GOP package that will make ICE the highest funded law enforcement agency in the federal government.   

Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said in a new memo tied to the Supreme Court ruling that federal immigration officers “may deport immigrants with as little as six hours’ notice to countries other than their own even if officials have not provided any assurances that the new arrivals will be safe from persecution or torture.”

Thousands of people with work permits and families in the U.S. may be targeted for removal to countries to which they have no ties or relatives, according to lawyers advocating for migrants. 

The president argues his administration wants to eject migrants who are murderers, criminals and the “worst of the worst.” Citing new ICE statistics, The Associated Press reported that nearly 72 percent of about 57,900 people ICE detained as of June 29 had no criminal convictions. Some 14,300 with pending criminal charges had no convictions. More than 27,000 people who are subject to immigration enforcement had no criminal convictions. 

SUBTRACTION: Meanwhile, as Congress increases funding and manpower for ICE, the State Department on Friday fired more than 1,300 civil servants and Foreign Service employees after the Supreme Court gave the administration the go-ahead to reshape the executive branch. 

This week, Senate Republicans are fighting over their legislative sway, specifically in relation to Trump’s request to rescind $9.4 billion in foreign aid and about $1 billion in public broadcasting approved by Congress.

“I suspect it’s going to be very close. I don’t know if it will be modified in advance, but I can’t really honestly look Americans in the face and say that I’m going to be doing something about the deficit if I can’t cut $9 billion,” Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), who backs the cuts, told CBS on Sunday.

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting has defenders in the Republican caucus, although it’s unclear how senators will seek to alter the rescissions package. A The New York Times podcast titled “Is Congress about to kill this local radio station?” broadcast on Friday noted that Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) supports public media in her state. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) also has expressed opposition to the cuts to public broadcasting as currently drafted.

Tom Abbott, longtime station manager of Alaska’s KFSK-FM, a public radio station in Petersburg, Alaska, told the Times he might have to lay off five employees to survive with two and limit current programming if Congress accedes to Trump’s rescission request.

SMART TAKE with BLAKE BURMAN

You might not have seen this above the fold, but it’s a big deal. The Pentagon is the largest shareholder in MP Materials Corp., buying $400 million worth of stock, potentially taking up to a 15 percent stake in the rare earth minerals producer.   

The first-of-its kind deal announced late last week could help the U.S. compete with China, which dominates rare earth production across the globe. Rare earth minerals, which are in the technology you’re reading this on and that you will use to get to work today, for example, are largely found in China. It currently has 69 percent of global production.     

This wasn’t the administration’s only step on rare earth minerals last week. Energy Secretary Chris Wright was in Wyoming on Friday for the opening of a rare earth mine. We’ll likely see more from the administration on this issue. What’s less certain is how much more government investment there could be, and what that might look like.

Burman hosts "The Hill" weeknights, 6p/5c on NewsNation.

3 Things to Know Today

1. Former President Biden said he made all the clemency decisions at the end of his term himself. In an interview with The New York Times, Biden called Trump and other Republicans “liars” for claiming his aides had used an autopen without his approval.
2. Former Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle, a year after the Trump assassination attempt in Butler, Pa., and her resignation, refuted congressional critics to say in a Sunday statement she had ordered agency countersnipers and additional protection to the rally.
3. Join The Hill and NewsNation on Wednesday for the inaugural Hill Nation Summit featuring interviews with Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) and more.

Leading the Day

TARIFFS AND TRADE: With Trump’s Aug. 1 revised tariffs deadline looming, world leaders and businesses across the globe are scrambling to untangle the situation. Trade deals with the U.S., when they exist, have proven vague, and the president has often pushed back deadlines and adjusted tariff rates for individual countries and multi-member blocs after initial negotiations. 

Trump on Saturday threatened to slap 30 percent tariffs on goods from Mexico and the European Union. The president’s announcements took aim at two of Washington's largest trading partners and threatened to upend the global economy if implemented. U.S.-E.U. trade in goods totaled nearly $1 trillion last year. The U.S. and Mexico are linked in a North American trading zone under a trade agreement negotiated during Trump’s first term. Almost $840 billion in goods pass between them.

French President Emmanuel Macron called on the EU to “defend European interests resolutely” after Trump’s latest tariff threat.

“It is more than ever up to the commission to assert the union’s determination to defend European interests resolutely,” Macron said on the social platform X. “In particular, this implies accelerating the preparation of credible countermeasures, by mobilising all the instruments at its disposal, including anti-coercion, if no agreement is reached by 1 August.”

▪ The Hill: Here’s a running list of Trump’s tariff letters to various countries.

▪ The Atlantic: Households will pay an average of $2,400 more for goods this year due to Trump’s policies, experts estimate.

▪ The Wall Street Journal: Economists expect stronger growth and job creation and a lower risk of recession.

Since Trump first announced his slate of “reciprocal” tariffs on April 2, trade negotiators representing various countries have scrambled to keep up. Trump has pushed back deadlines at the drop of a hat. Some negotiations have faltered at the eleventh hour, requiring concessions — such as Canada abandoning its digital services tax — to restart.

At times the tariffs have also appeared tied to issues beyond trade. With Brazil, Trump has gone after the country's prosecution of its former president. And Trump has accused Canada of not doing enough to curb the flow of fentanyl over the northern border.

Airlangga Hartarto, the Indonesian minister for economic affairs, met with U.S. officials in Washington on Wednesday. He described talks with Washington to The New York Times like “going through a labyrinth” and arriving “back to Square 1.” 

“We’re still far away from making real deals,” Carsten Brzeski, global head of macroeconomics at ING Research in Germany, told the Times, saying the uncertainty is “poison” for the global economy.

National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett on Sunday defended Trump’s 50 percent tariff against Brazil — a country with which the U.S. has a trade surplus.

On ABC News's "This Week,” Hassett said the president has the authority to impose new tariffs if he thinks there is a national defense emergency or a national security threat.

“The bottom line is that what we're doing absolutely, collectively across every country is we're onshoring production in the U.S. to reduce the national emergency, that is, that we have a massive trade deficit that's putting us at risk should we need production in the U.S. because of a national security crisis,” he said. 

Trump’s letter announcing the tariffs on Brazil focused on the ongoing criminal case against his political ally, former President Jair Bolsonaro.

▪ The New York Times: Most nations are still negotiating with the U.S. in hopes of avoiding punitive tariffs. At the same time, they’re looking to diversify their trading partners.

EPSTEIN FILES: Trump over the weekend defended Attorney General Pam Bondi amid continued fallout over the Trump administration's handling of material related to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.

Trump wrote on Truth Social that Bondi is doing “a FANTASTIC JOB” in her role and called into conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s radio show to express his support for the attorney general. 

Bondi on Sunday also made an appearance in Trump’s box at the FIFA Club World Cup final in New Jersey, where the president participated in the award ceremony after Chelsea beat Paris Saint-Germain, 3-0.

The attorney general has faced backlash from MAGA allies after promising earlier this year to release files on Epstein, a convicted sex offender who died in jail. The Justice Department and FBI issued a memo this month concluding Epstein had no "client list" and killed himself, despite theories otherwise long pushed in conservative circles.

Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino has been at the center of the internal fighting over the Epstein situation, with a source familiar confirming to The Hill that he was furious over how the documents were handled. 

Trump was asked Sunday by reporters if Bongino, previously a far-right podcaster, was still the deputy FBI director, and whether they had spoken recently.

“Oh I think so. I did, I spoke to him today. Dan Bongino, very good guy. I’ve known him a long time. I’ve done his show many many times. He sounded terrific, actually. No, I think he’s in good shape,” Trump said.

▪ The Hill: Bondi reportedly fired several Department of Justice employees with ties to former special counsel Jack Smith, who probed Trump’s handling of classified documents and efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

▪ The New York Times: The FBI is using polygraphs to test officials’ loyalty.

FLOOD RESPONSE: Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Sunday said a new Federal Emergency Management Agency rule she initiated for contracts approval did not delay federal responses to deadly flooding in Texas, as reported by news outlets. “Absolutely false,” she told NBC’s “Meet the Press.”  

ELMO, NO: The "Sesame Street" Elmo account on social media platform X was hacked Sunday with an antisemitic post, among others, and references to Trump and Epstein. The posts were later deleted.

“Elmo’s X account was compromised today by an unknown hacker who posted disgusting messages, including antisemitic and racist posts,” a spokeswoman for Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit organization behind “Sesame Street,” said in a statement.

Where and When

• The president at 10 a.m. will meet in the Oval Office with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. Trump at noon will participate in a luncheon with members of the White House Faith Office
• The House convenes at noon.
• The Senate will meet at 3 p.m. 

Zoom In

POLITICS: South Carolina is already setting the stage for shadow 2028 presidential primaries as potential White House hopefuls from both parties travel to the Palmetto State.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) traveled through rural South Carolina during a two-day tour last week, while Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) are expected to head to the state later this month. Over on the Republican side, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin is speaking at a South Carolina GOP fundraiser next month. 

The moves have raised speculation over whether the individuals are laying early groundwork for possible 2028 White House bids and what role South Carolina will play in the political calendar.

Six months into Trump 2.0, Democrats are feeling hope — and fear — as they fight to find their footing and claw themselves from the wilds of the minority in next year’s midterm elections.

Despite finding powerful messaging tools in Trump’s domestic agenda, polls show the Democrats’ approval ratings at historic lows. And the party is still scrambling to identify a national leader almost half a year after Trump’s return to the White House.

“This is a nightmare scenario for the Dems right now,” one Democratic strategist told The Hill’s Amie Parnes and Mike Lillis. “We better pray long and hard that the country is going to be in a f‑‑‑ing depression because I don’t know how else we find ourselves out of this mess.” 

▪ The Hill: Beshear won’t rule out a 2028 presidential bid.

Texas: Trump is keeping Republicans guessing over whether he’ll endorse in the closely watched Texas GOP Senate primary as incumbent Sen. John Cornyn’s (R) path to victory against state Attorney General Ken Paxton looks increasingly fraught. An endorsement from Trump has the potential to give Cornyn a much-needed boost as polls consistently show him trailing Paxton.

New York: Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) said on Sunday he plans to speak soon with Trump to discuss a path forward as he considers whether to launch a bid for governor in New York. Entering the statewide race would likely pit him against Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), who is gearing up to launch her own campaign against New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D).

North Carolina: Sen. Thom Tillis’s (R-N.C.) decision not to seek reelection next year could have ramifications for Republican leaders in Congress. The senator has indicated he is excited to wield his new-found political freedom, giving Senate leaders a fresh headache as they look to pass the lion's share of the GOP agenda and key nominees over the next year. 

Republicans are eager to see Lara Trump enter the Tar Heel State Senate race, seeing her as their best opportunity to keep the seat after Tillis’s retirement announcement. The daughter-in-law of the president and a former Republican National Committee co-chair, Lara Trump has quickly become an early favorite for the GOP nomination if she chooses to run. A source close to the president told The Hill she’s considering a bid and would clear the Republican field if she chooses to go forward.

▪ The New Yorker: Is Elon Musk’s “America Party” worth taking seriously?

STATE WATCH: On Friday, a federal judge ordered ICE to temporarily halt aggressive raids in Southern California because its enforcement tactics violated civil rights and the Constitution.

California may have lost up to $3 billion in potential revenue from a signature emissions-reduction program over the past year, according to a new report.

Hospitals across the country are bracing for the impact from the Medicaid cuts in Trump's sweeping tax cut law. Rural facilities in particular say they are going to have to make difficult financial decisions about which services to cut and which to keep.

Planned Parenthood stands to lose a huge portion of its federal funding under Trump’s “big, beautiful bill,” which could result in the closure of up to 200 clinics, according to the organization.

Elsewhere

UKRAINE: Trump is expected to announce a new plan to arm Ukraine today that would include offensive weapons, Axios reports. The move would mark a major shift for the president, who previously vowed to only send defensive arms. Officials in Kyiv, Washington and the EU hope the announcement will shift Russian President Vladimir Putin's calculations regarding a truce.

"Trump is really pissed at Putin. His announcement tomorrow is going to be very aggressive," Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) told Axios Sunday.

Trump is expected to unveil the plan when he meets with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in Washington today. It comes on the heels of his announcement that the U.S. plans to sell NATO allies weaponry that it can pass on to Ukraine. 

▪ The Hill: Trump says US will send Patriot missiles to Ukraine.

▪ The Guardian analysis: Ukraine must get ready for a future in which there is no ceasefire with Russia.

▪ Reuters: Russia’s and China’s foreign ministers on Sunday discussed the Ukraine war and their ties with the United States.

▪ The Washington Post: Ukraine said it killed Russian agents who assassinated a senior intelligence officer.

ISRAEL: Ceasefire talks to end the war in Gaza stalled over the weekend as Israel and Hamas remain divided over the extent of Israeli forces' withdrawal from the Palestinian enclave. The indirect talks over a U.S. proposal for a 60-day ceasefire continued throughout Saturday, marking a total of seven days. Trump said he hoped for a breakthrough soon based on a new U.S.-backed ceasefire proposal.

Meanwhile, a United Nations summit on a two-state solution between the Israelis and Palestinians has been rescheduled to the end of July. But French President Emmanuel Macron is not expected to attend, making it less likely that it will trigger a series of high-profile announcements on recognition of a Palestinian state.

▪ BBC: Ten people, including six children, were killed in an Israeli airstrike while waiting to fill water containers in Gaza on Sunday. The Israeli military conceded a “technical error” caused the strike.

▪ NBC News: Sayfollah Musallet, a 20-year-old American from Florida, was beaten to death by Israeli settlers on Friday while visiting relatives in the occupied West Bank.

Opinion

• MAGA is tearing itself apart over Epstein, by David French, opinion columnist, The New York Times.
• The outlines of a Gaza deal are obvious. But the suffering continues, by The Washington Post editorial board.

The Closer

And finally …