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Immigration officials have gained new authority to swiftly remove migrants who entered the United States through two programs established during Biden’s presidency, according to a memo signed by acting Homeland Security Secretary Benjamine C. Huffman.
The programs in question, which included a Customs and Border Protection application system and an initiative targeting migrants from Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Haiti, had permitted approximately 1.4 million individuals to remain in the country since early 2023 under temporary “parole” status.
The CBP One application, which had facilitated legal entry for nearly one million migrants through online asylum scheduling, was terminated by the Trump administration earlier this week.
Trump’s White House announced today that the deportation flights have started.
And for the first time, the U.S. is using military transport planes to do it.
This flight took around 80 illegal migrants back to Guatemala. pic.twitter.com/Y5rrAYI5zA
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) January 24, 2025
According to The New York Times, Huffman’s internal memo, signed Thursday evening, provides ICE agents with guidelines for utilizing expanded deportation powers previously limited to border encounters. Advocacy groups have expressed worry that these measures might extend to Afghan and Ukrainian immigrants admitted under different programs.
A Department of Homeland Security official informed the Times that the Trump administration considers Biden’s immigration programs to have been operating outside legal boundaries.
This directive represents the latest in a series of measures by Trump’s administration addressing national security and the immigration surge that expanded during Biden’s tenure.
🇺🇸US Military aircraft currently being used to deport illegal immigrants back to Guatemalapic.twitter.com/Ca9iFAL7WP
— RJ (@RJDIntel) January 24, 2025
Trump marked his return to office by declaring a border emergency and ordering additional military presence along the southern border, while pledging to remove individuals with criminal records who are in the country illegally.
The administration’s promised deportation operations began Thursday, with numerous migrants being arrested and others transported out of the country via military aircraft.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Huffman’s internal communication extended immigration enforcement authority to various Justice Department agencies, including the DEA, ATF, and U.S. Marshals Service.