President Donald Trump urged U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers Wednesday to resume vehicle stops, one day after administration officials described a nationwide pause on most of the tactic as temporary.
“In order to do this, we must be strong, tough, and smart, and we CANNOT give up one of I.C.E.’s most important and effective Crime Fighting tools, THE TRAFFIC STOP!” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post. “Once we do, we are playing right into the criminal’s hands.”
Trump told officers to use discretion while continuing the tactic.
“I.C.E., be judicious, fair and smart, and go back and do your very important job,” he wrote.
“The Radical Left Dumocrats would like to see this done, but it won’t happen on my watch,” Trump added.
Reported pause followed fatal shootings
ICE directed its Enforcement and Removal Operations division Tuesday to suspend most vehicle stops nationwide while officers received additional tactical training, according to reports citing law enforcement sources. The restriction did not apply to Homeland Security Investigations and included exceptions for serious criminal targets and joint operations involving judicial warrants, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
Border czar Tom Homan described the move as a short review rather than a policy change.
“It’s not a policy change, it’s a temporary pause,” Homan told Fox News, Reuters reported. “This is going to be a short-term review to make sure ICE agents are safe and doing the right thing.”
An ICE spokesperson did not directly confirm the internal directive.
“We are always evaluating our procedures to keep our officers safe and criminals off our streets. We will not disclose or discuss law enforcement tactics,” the spokesperson told Reuters.
The reported pause followed the fatal shootings of Colombian national Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Biddeford, Maine, on Monday and Mexican national Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston on July 7. DHS officials acknowledged that ICE officers were seeking other people in both operations.
Calls for a pause
U.S. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said Tuesday she asked Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin to stop non-urgent vehicle stops after the Biddeford shooting.
“I spoke with DHS Secretary Mullin last night and urged him to cease all non-urgent vehicle stops in the wake of yesterday’s deadly Biddeford shooting. I am encouraged that the Department has agreed to do so,” Collins said.
Former acting ICE Director John Sandweg, who served during the Obama administration, also urged the agency to review the tactic.
“I think it is absolutely time that we take a hard look, if not a moratorium on vehicular stops,” Sandweg told CNN News Central.
Hours after Trump’s post, Mullin said illegal aliens would be arrested and deported “wherever they are.” His statement did not explicitly say whether ICE had formally lifted the temporary restriction on most vehicle stops.
Provided by Dallas Express
