Confusion reigned Monday over the federal immigration crackdown after President Trump vowed to ramp up deportations in Los Angeles and other Democratic cities just days after officials signaled they would stop arresting workers in some economic sectors.
In a Truth Social post, Trump said that officials “must expand efforts to detain and deport Illegal Aliens in America’s largest Cities, such as Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York, where Millions upon Millions of Illegal Aliens reside.” He then cited without proof the claim that those here illegally boost Democratic voter turnout.
It was unclear how the threat squares with a directive last week for immigration officers to pause arrests at farms, restaurants and hotels.
Multiple news organizations said senior Immigration and Customs Enforcement official Tatum King sent an email Thursday saying, “Please hold on all work site enforcement investigations/operations on agriculture (including aquaculture and meat packing plants), restaurants and operating hotels.”
He added that investigations probing “human trafficking, money laundering, drug smuggling into these industries are OK.”
The Trump administration has not clarified the changes, and it was clear immigration actions continued through the weekend.
Since June 6, when immigration agents launched a campaign in Los Angeles to find and capture unauthorized workers at job sites, churches, schools and wherever else they could find them, tension across the city has been palpable.
Stephen Miller, White House deputy chief of staff and the main architect of Trump’s immigration policies, said ICE officers would target at least 3,000 arrests a day, up from about 650 a day during the first five months of Trump’s second term.
But Democratic lawmakers like California Sen. Adam Schiff warn that the plan would “inflame tensions, divide families and stir up more chaos” while placating Trump’s base at the economy’s expense.
“Trump’s extreme policies are tearing the country apart and bad for America,” Schiff wrote in a statement on X.
Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), who was briefly handcuffed when he attempted to ask a question during a Homeland Security news conference last week, echoed that Trump’s actions have gone too far.
“He’s still failing to put forth meaningful solutions for the millions of law-abiding longterm residents who have been here contributing to our economy and our communities. They deserve better,” he wrote in a statement.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass on Monday said Trump’s plan to expand deportation efforts is “illegal, divisive and flies in the face of everything we stand for in Los Angeles.”
Protests in the city’s Civic Center have led to sometimes violent clashes between residents, immigration advocates and local and federal law enforcement, while buildings and businesses in the area have been damaged and vandalized. A curfew downtown has mitigated the destruction but brought economic activity in the area — still ailing from the pandemic — to a crawl.
In pockets all across the city, rumors swirl about ICE checkpoints, ICE raids and warnings for immigrants — unauthorized and otherwise — to stay home lest they be stopped by an agent, who may or may not believe the person they’re speaking with is a citizen or legally permitted to be here.
The continued immigration sweeps come as military forces deployed by the president remain present in Los Angeles, continuing a series of critical showdowns between federal and state officials.
On Tuesday, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals is expected to rule on California’s bid to stop the Trump deployment of National Guard troops in Los Angeles. Experts say the legal battle could amount to a test case for powers the White House has long hoped to wield.
U.S. District Court Judge Charles Breyer of San Francisco wrote Thursday that Trump had steamrolled state leaders when he federalized California’s troops and deployed them against protesters.
“His actions were illegal — both exceeding the scope of his statutory authority and violating the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution,” Breyer wrote.
During Saturday’s protests organized under the theme of “No Kings” — meant to express opposition to the Trump administration — tens of thousands of participants took to the streets of Los Angeles and other major cities in California and other parts of the country.
By the end of the night, officers had arrested 35 people on suspicion of curfew violations, one on suspicion of failure to disperse, one on suspicion of resisting, obstructing or delaying an officer and one on suspicion of resisting arrest, officials said.
Since immigration protests began June 6, Los Angeles police have made 575 arrests.
There were no arrests on Sunday, when it was remarkably quiet downtown in the afternoon compared with the previous week. Still, around 200 activists were there, determined to keep the anti-ICE and anti-Trump protests going.
“ICE out of LA! Whose streets? Our streets!” a group chanted as they marched between City Hall and the Metropolitan Detention Center to a chorus of supportive honks from drivers.
“Today’s been modest but it’s good to see so many people willing to keep up the momentum,” said Christopher Lee, 39, of Venice, who carried a sign that said, “LA’s too hot for ICE.”
Sunday was Lee’s first day out protesting since the surge in immigration raids that have roiled the region and sparked more than a week of protests. He said he could have come out Saturday for the massive “No Kings,” but he knew fewer people would come Sunday so he chose to wait.
Sean Patterson similarly didn’t come out Saturday so he and a friend decided to camp out in front of City Hall on Sunday.
“I can’t sit by and live out in L.A. when this is all going on,” Patterson, 23, of Hollywood, said. “It just feels like we’re slowly inching closer and closer to … anything people in power want to happen can happen.”
Just before 8 p.m., there were only three people left on the City Hall steps.
Bryan Sagastume was glad to be going home without the sting of tear gas Sunday after being tear gassed several times during Saturday night’s action.
He stood calmly in front of the quiet City Hall, holding up a Mexican flag, representing his mother’s birthplace.
“Both my parents are immigrants,” the 25-year-old said. “They grew up here, working hard … no criminals, nothing like that. And I just feel like what Trump is doing is wrong.”
Sagastume was born in the U.S., so he feels safe to come out and protest — and wants to do so for those who can’t. Still, the sweeps have weighed heavily on his family.
“My mom’s been, like, not going outside the house, staying home,” he said. “She’s scared right now to go outside.”
Staff writers Sonja Sharp, Andrea Castillo and Howard Blume contributed to this report.
