US Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers who spent the last four years stuck behind a desk processing illegal migrants under the Biden-Harris administration are preparing to get back out into the field — as President-elect Donald Trump and his “border czar” Tom Homan vowed to “flood” sanctuary cities with agents.
The move would mean thousands of desk-bound ICE officers will soon be out making arrests of the millions of illegal immigrants who snuck across the besieged southern border and are now roaming American streets.
The federal agency has a total workforce of about 21,000 employees, which includes non-law enforcement personnel who handle administration work, according to a Department of Homeland Security budget overview.
It is unclear exactly how many of the total law enforcement personnel will be reassigned from pushing paperwork, however, sources from a West Coast field office and an East Coast field office told The Post that an estimated 60-70% of their officers are currently stuck behind desks.
ICE sources said the rank-and-file are excited to be “catching criminals that Biden let roam freely in the country for the last four years without any consequences.”
One source said they “can’t wait” to get back onto the streets while another said that while he hasn’t had any experience yet making arrests for ICE, his years of previous experience with Border Patrol will make it an easy task.
It will be a heavy lift for the new administration, however, which will need to train those officers who haven’t had experience making arrests under the Biden-Harris administration, sources said.
In a recent interview with The Post, Homan — an ex-cop and former border agent from West Carthage, New York — put sanctuary cities, including the Big Apple, on notice, warning them to cooperate with the feds.
“If they’re not willing to do it then get out of the way — we’re coming,” Homan said, adding that enforcing tougher immigration laws will require a lot of manpower, “so if I have to flood agents to the sanctuary cities to get the job done then that’s what we’re gonna do.”
Meanwhile, ICE insiders worry they don’t have the resources even with the reassignments.
“The personnel have to be there to carry out these ‘mass deportations.’ Right now, a lot of units have been depleted,” said one ICE source.
“If the fugitive operations street team isn’t making enough arrests, they’ll crack down on them first,” the source added, referring to the agency’s program that assists field offices in locating and arresting migrants who represent a threat to national security or public safety.
“And if that’s still not enough, then they’ll probably be mandated to add more officers to the arrest team to make more arrests.”
There are dozens of vacant positions in each ICE office that need the funding in order to fill them, according to sources.
“They’re not able to fill them because they don’t have the funding for them,” a source opined. “They really defunded us without really saying it,” they added, referring to the Biden-Harris administration.
Homan, who served in the last Trump administration as acting ICE director, said that in his first week on the job, he plans to visit the southern and northern borders and meet with Border Patrol and ICE personnel to get a sense of their greatest needs.
He also indicated that he would prioritize making arrests of illegal migrants who pose threats to national security and public safety, and bring back worksite raids, which the Biden-Harris administration halted in October 2021.
Meanwhile, some migrants are choosing to cross the border now because they fear the hawkish policies of the Trump administration.
One migrant family from Venezuela that crossed into Eagle Pass, Texas, Wednesday morning told The Post that they’re taking a “risk” to come now because they very well believe they could be deported when Trump comes to power.
“It’s a risk,” one of the women from Venezuela said after slipping into the country and into the waiting arms of Border Patrol agents.
Neither ICE nor a Trump spokesperson immediately responded to requests for comment.
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