U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is fighting back against false media reports about its recent arrests of illegal aliens across several states. In a series of tweets, ICE pointed out that the 683 arrests of mostly criminal illegal immigrants announced last week was a routine mission targeted at people with criminal convictions, and not the President Trump-ordered round-up of peaceful immigrants that it was painted as by many media outlets. ICE even sent out a link to a news release of a 2012 immigration sweep under President Obama that netted more than 3100 arrests---over 350 percent more than last week's operation.
ICE says media reports of massive ICE checkpoints, sweeps or roundups are "false, dangerous and irresponsible," adding that "these reports create mass panic and put communities and law enforcement personnel in unnecessary danger."
Ira Mehlman with the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) supports the ICE arrests, and agrees that they are being mischaracterized by opponents in the media. "(The media) are trying to whip up hysteria, they are engaged in a public relations battle and are willing to do whatever it takes," he tells KTRH. "They want to create the perception that there is something draconian happening, that people are being terrorized, when in fact nothing like that is happening...ICE is simply doing its job like any other law enforcement agency in the country."
Mehlman believes the Trump administration has simply freed up ICE to do that job on a more regular basis than the Obama Administration, and that operations like the one last week will ultimately serve as a deterrent to illegal immigration. "What we need to do is to send the message (to illegals) that there is a reasonable chance that you are going to be caught, and if we catch you we're going to remove you," he says.ice