U.S. Customs and Border Protection temporarily shut down the San Ysidro port of entry in San Diego-Tijuana, to install additional fortifications for migrant caravan in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico. The lanes reopened after about three hours. USP NEWS: SAN YSIDRO PORT OF ENTRY MEX
San Diego, California – The Trump administration is preparing a sweeping overhaul of immigration enforcement that would place Border Patrol leaders in charge of ICE operations across U.S. cities, according to multiple sources familiar with the plan.
The move comes as top officials grow increasingly frustrated with what they view as sluggish deportation numbers. Immigration and Customs Enforcement currently averages about 1,100 arrests a day — far below the administration’s stated goal of 3,000.
“The mentality is CBP does what they’re told, and the administration thinks ICE isn’t getting the job done,” a Department of Homeland Security official said. “So CBP will do it.”
The change would mark a major shift in how immigration laws are enforced inside the country. Border Patrol agents, traditionally responsible for monitoring crossings at or near the border, would take direct control of operations in major metropolitan areas — including Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York — where ICE normally leads enforcement.
In recent years, Border Patrol’s reach has already expanded. Under Trump, agents have been deployed far beyond the southern border. It was Border Patrol units, not ICE, that carried out aggressive enforcement actions in Los Angeles and Chicago — including an incident caught on video in which El Centro Sector Chief Greg Bovino threw tear gas into a crowd of demonstrators.
“This administration has brought back roaming patrols like we’ve never seen,” said San Diego activist Benjamin Prado, who runs Union del Barrio, an organization that monitors immigration enforcement in Southern California. “Everything indicates that it’s going to be a much more aggressive, much more hostile entity than what we’ve seen.”
DHS officials have not confirmed any official personnel changes. Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement, “This is one team, one fight. President Trump has a brilliant, tenacious team led by Secretary Noem to deliver on the American people’s mandate to remove criminal illegal aliens from this country.”
President Trump defended the strategy during a recent appearance on 60 Minutes, arguing that immigration enforcement has been limited by “liberal judges” appointed by Democratic presidents. “I think they haven’t gone far enough,” he said. “You have to get the people out.”
For immigration advocates, the implications are alarming. “It’s very concerning,” Prado said. “All this indicates that we’re going to see many more citizens and migrant workers being assaulted, being attacked.”
