Trump Action Archive

Supporting reports

• Trump administration issued guidance disqualifying pro-Palestine immigrants from green cards — The Trump administration released new guidance stating that criticizing Israel or participating in pro-Palestine campus protests could disqualify applicants for green cards. The guidance also discourages approval for applicants with a history of "endorsing, promoting, or supporting anti-American views," including holding signs advocating overthrow of the U.S. government. The policy effectively weaponizes immigration status against political speech and protest activity.

Supporting reports

• Senate Republicans advance $140bn budget resolution for ICE and CBP funding — The Republican-controlled Senate approved a budget resolution on a 50–48 party-line vote (with two Republican defections) to allocate up to $140 billion to Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection. The measure advances the budget reconciliation process, allowing Republicans to bypass a Democratic filibuster and fund Trump's mass deportation agenda. The resolution now moves to the House before committees can draft legislation formally unlocking the funding for agencies that have operated without appropriations since mid-February.

Supporting reports

• House approved $70 billion immigration enforcement budget resolution — The House of Representatives approved a budget resolution on Wednesday evening by a vote of 215–211 that creates a pathway for approximately $70 billion in additional funding for ICE and Border Patrol. Speaker Mike Johnson held the vote open for more than five hours to secure holdouts. The vote was strictly along party lines. The Senate had already approved the plan on April 23. This budget resolution enables Republicans to use the reconciliation process to bypass a Democratic filibuster in the Senate and advance the detailed funding bill in May.

Supporting reports

• Board of Immigration Appeals ruling expands deportation pathway for DACA recipients — On April 24, the Board of Immigration Appeals, an administrative court within the Justice Department, issued a precedent-setting decision in the case of Catalina Santiago, a DACA recipient detained at El Paso airport. The ruling holds that DACA status is insufficient to terminate removal proceedings, potentially enabling DHS to advance deportation cases against more than 500,000 DACA recipients. The BIA sided with government lawyers in 97 percent of publicly posted cases last year, significantly above historical averages.
• Board of Immigration Appeals ruling on DACA deportations — On April 24, the Board of Immigration Appeals issued a precedent-setting decision stating that DACA status alone is insufficient to terminate removal proceedings. This ruling could facilitate the Department of Homeland Security's efforts to advance deportation cases against DACA recipients, affecting over 500,000 individuals. The decision aligns with the government's stance in 97% of cases last year, marking a significant shift in the legal landscape for DACA recipients, many of whom have lived in the U.S. for most of their lives.

Supporting reports

• Trump administration directs DOJ to pursue mass denaturalization cases against 384 foreign-born citizens — The Trump administration is directing the Department of Justice to pursue denaturalization cases against 384 foreign-born US citizens, with civil litigators in 39 regional offices assigned to file cases in coming weeks. A DOJ official characterized this as "the first wave" of a "White House initiative" to strip citizenship from naturalized Americans. Historically rare due to cost and manpower, denaturalization has been used to target political activists and immigrants on broad grounds including alleged "nexus to terrorism" or gang affiliation, with experts warning the criteria are overly broad.
• Justice Department assigns prosecutors to file denaturalization cases against 384 naturalized citizens — The Justice Department announced it is assigning civil litigators to file denaturalization cases against 384 naturalized citizens as part of an effort to pursue "the highest volume of denaturalization referrals in history." The cases will be distributed across dozens of U.S. attorney's offices nationwide. Denaturalization requires proving material fraud in the naturalization process before a federal judge.

Supporting reports

• Trump reposts racist segment calling for ban on birthright citizenship — Trump reposted on Truth Social a transcript of a racist segment from right-wing Newsmax that referred to China and India as "hellhole[s]" and immigrants from those countries as "gangsters with laptops" who have "stepped on our flag." The segment called for a national referendum on banning birthright citizenship rather than leaving the matter to the Supreme Court.

Supporting reports

• ICE detains wife of US Army sergeant at Louisiana military base — ICE agents arrested Annie Ramos, wife of US Army Sergeant Matthew Blank, at his Louisiana military base as he prepared to deploy. Ramos, a biochemistry student and Sunday school teacher with no criminal history, had received a deportation order "in absentia" in 2005 after her family missed an immigration hearing when she was an infant. She was released from federal custody following media coverage and subsequently issued a statement focusing on obtaining legal immigration status.

Supporting reports

• Senate Republicans prepare ICE and Border Patrol funding package — Senate Republicans are preparing legislation that could begin moving this week to fund ICE and Border Patrol through the end of Trump's term, with an expected cost exceeding $50 billion over three years. The bill is expected to move through reconciliation, a process that allows passage with a simple majority instead of the 60 votes normally required, limiting debate and eliminating the filibuster. This approach bypasses the full weight of opposition that would otherwise accompany sweeping immigration enforcement policy.
• Senate Republicans proposed three-year ICE and CBP funding through budget reconciliation — Senate Republicans are preparing to introduce a funding package for ICE and Border Patrol, expected to cost over $50 billion over three years. The package could be moved through reconciliation, allowing it to pass with a simple majority and limiting debate. This approach could fast-track significant immigration enforcement funding without the usual oversight and debate.
• — Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) proposed funding Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) through budget reconciliation, a process that cannot be filibustered and requires no Democratic votes. Rather than funding these agencies for one year as standard appropriations bills do, Thune proposed a three-year funding measure, which would prevent Congress from reforming ICE and CBP through the appropriations process for 2026, 2027, and 2028. Senate Democrats had refused to fund ICE and CBP without reforms requiring agents to obtain judicial warrants before breaking into homes and to remove masks during operations.

Supporting reports

• House passed legislation protecting Haitian Temporary Protected Status beneficiaries — The House voted 224–204 on Thursday to pass legislation allowing approximately 350,000 Haitians to remain eligible for Temporary Protected Status for three years after the Department of Homeland Security terminated those protections. Ten Republicans and one independent joined Democrats in the bipartisan vote. The bill now proceeds to the Senate, where passage is uncertain. The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments on April 29 regarding whether the administration can proceed with ending TPS for Haitians and approximately 6,100 Syrians.
• US House approves bill to shield 350,000 Haitians from deportations for three years — The US House of Representatives voted 224-204 on Thursday to approve legislation sponsored by Rep. Laura Gillen (D-NY) to continue temporary protected status (TPS) for approximately 350,000 Haitians for three years, preventing their deportation. The measure passed with support from all Democrats and 11 Republican defectors, marking a rare bipartisan rebuke of Trump's mass deportation agenda. The bill now faces an uncertain path in the Senate while the Supreme Court prepares to hear arguments on Trump's TPS cancellations.

Supporting reports

• De-ICE Citizens Bank national mobilization call scheduled — The De-ICE Citizens Bank campaign is holding a national mobilization call on April 16, 2026, from 7–8 p.m. EDT ahead of Citizens Bank's April 23 shareholder meeting. Citizens Bank is financially entangled with private detention operators CoreCivic and GEO Group. The strategy targets a corporate governance moment to apply visible public pressure on the bank's financial support for immigration detention infrastructure.
• De-ICE Citizens Bank national organizing call on April 16 — The De-ICE Citizens Bank campaign is holding a national organizing call on April 16, 7–8 PM EDT for existing and prospective participants ahead of Citizens Bank's April 23 shareholder meeting. The campaign identifies Citizens Bank as a financial partner of CoreCivic and The GEO Group, the largest private operators of ICE detention facilities, and frames the shareholder meeting as a corporate governance accountability moment.

Supporting reports

• Trump administration cancels $11 million Catholic Charities contract — The Trump administration abruptly canceled an $11 million contract with Catholic Charities, cutting off care for vulnerable migrant children and ending a partnership that has existed for more than 60 years. The article characterizes this as retaliation against the Catholic Church for the Pope's and Archbishop of Baltimore's criticism of the administration's military policies and rhetoric.
• Trump cut federal funding for Catholic charitable program for migrant children — Trump retaliated against the Catholic Church by cutting off federal funding for one of their most successful charitable programs working with children who arrive in the United States, following the Pope's public criticism of the administration's military operations and theology.

Supporting reports

• Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy announced federal withholding of $73.5 million from New York over immigrant driver's license dispute — Trump's Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy announced that the federal government will withhold $73.5 million in funding from New York State because the state has refused to review the commercial driver's licenses of approximately 33,000 immigrants. New York officials stated they are complying with federal law. The action targets the state as part of Trump's ongoing campaign against Minnesota and other jurisdictions perceived as hostile to his administration.

Supporting reports

• ICE detains wife of US Army sergeant despite legal protection status — Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrested Deisy Rivera Ortega, a Salvadoran national and wife of Sgt First Class Jose Serrano (27 years military service, Afghanistan deployment), during an immigration office appointment in El Paso, Texas on April 14. Rivera Ortega had received legal protection in 2019 barring deportation to El Salvador and held an active work permit. DHS claimed she entered illegally and was subject to a December 2019 deportation order; her attorney filed a petition challenging the detention's legality. The case exemplifies ICE's expanding enforcement beyond stated priorities of dangerous criminals, affecting military families.

Supporting reports

• Justice Department sues Connecticut and New Haven over sanctuary immigration policies — The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit in the District of Connecticut against the State of Connecticut, Governor Ned Lamont, Attorney General William Tong, the City of New Haven, and Mayor Justin Elicker, challenging state and local sanctuary policies that restrict cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. The complaint alleges that Connecticut's "Trust Act" and related policies obstruct federal immigration law enforcement and have resulted in the release of individuals the department characterizes as dangerous criminals. The department invokes the Supremacy Clause as the constitutional basis for preemption.

Supporting reports

• ICE officers placed on administrative leave and face potential dismissal or criminal prosecution for false statements in Sosa Celis shooting — Following the release of surveillance video that contradicted ICE agents' accounts of a January 14 shooting in Minneapolis, ICE Director Todd Lyons announced that the officers involved were placed on administrative leave and may face dismissal or criminal prosecution for making false statements. The video showed a 12-second confrontation, not the three-minute violent altercation agents had claimed. The case against Sosa Celis and Aljorna was dismissed with prejudice in February after prosecutors reviewed the footage.
• Surveillance video released showing ICE shooting contradicts agents' account — Newly released surveillance camera footage from the January 14 shooting in Minneapolis publicly undermined ICE agents' accounts of the incident. The video showed the confrontation lasted approximately 12 seconds, not the three minutes claimed by agents, and revealed no evidence of the repeated strikes with a shovel or broom that officers had described. The footage supported the defendants' version of events.

Supporting reports

• State Department revokes green cards of three Iranian nationals and arrests family members — The US State Department revoked the green card status of three Iranian nationals—Seyed Eissa Hashemi (whose mother was a 1979 hostage crisis spokesperson), Hamideh Soleimani Afshar (niece of assassinated general Qasem Soleimani), and Fatemeh Ardeshir-Larijani (daughter of former security council secretary Ali Larijani)—and federal agents arrested them. The department cited family ties to Iranian regime figures and military officials as grounds for termination of legal permanent resident status.

Supporting reports

• Unite Here Local 11 threatens World Cup strike over working conditions and ICE presence — Kurt Petersen, co-president of Unite Here Local 11, representing approximately 2,000 workers at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, issued a formal threat to strike during the 2026 FIFA World Cup (June–July) unless Fifa and stadium owner Stan Kroenke address union demands. Demands include fair working practices, a public statement from Fifa excluding ICE from the games, and Fifa's severance of ties with Airbnb and contribution to a housing fund for hospitality workers. The strike threat comes amid ICE enforcement controversies and housing affordability crises in Los Angeles.

Supporting reports

• Trump administration fires immigration judges who blocked deportations — The Trump administration abruptly fired two immigration judges appointed by the Biden administration in 2024 who were approaching the end of their probationary terms. Both judges—who had granted asylum at higher rates than peers—had blocked deportations of Tufts University student Rümeysa Öztürk and Columbia University student Mohsen Mahdawi. The firings were reported by the New York Times on April 11.
• Department of Justice terminates six immigration judges, including two who ruled against deportations of pro-Palestinian students — The Department of Justice terminated six immigration judges, including Roopal Patel and Nina Froes, who had ruled against the Trump administration in deportation cases involving pro-Palestinian university students Rümeysa Öztürk and Mohsen Mahdawi. Both judges were Biden appointees with prior immigration defense experience. Patel rejected deportation grounds against Öztürk; Froes blocked removal of Mahdawi. The administration stated judges are evaluated on conduct, impartiality, and performance, but NPR analysis found the Trump administration appears to target judges with immigrant representation backgrounds.

Supporting reports

• Federal judge in California found border agents violated earlier order on warrantless arrests during immigration sweep — A federal judge in California determined that border agents violated a prior court order during an immigration enforcement sweep in Sacramento. The violation involved warrantless arrests conducted during the operation. The ruling represents judicial enforcement of constraints on executive immigration enforcement actions.

Supporting reports

• Trump posted graphic video of woman's murder with anti-immigrant rhetoric — At 7:49 p.m., President Trump's social media account posted a graphic video depicting a man killing a woman with a hammer. The accompanying text attacked Haitian immigrants, former President Joe Biden, and "the Radical Democrats in Congress," echoing what the article describes as "vicious racism" used to feed his base. The post came hours after the First Lady's unexpected press conference about Jeffrey Epstein.
• Trump Posts Graphic Video on Social Media — On April 9, 2026, President Trump shared a graphic video depicting violence, accompanied by a message targeting Haitian immigrants and former President Joe Biden. The post was seen as an attempt to rally his base through provocative imagery and rhetoric.

Supporting reports

• ICE detention of 19-year-old asylum seeker at Dilley center; family separation and conditions — Olivia, a 19-year-old asylum seeker from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, has been detained at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Texas for over four months. She was apprehended with her mother and two younger siblings in November 2025, then separated from them—her family was later released in mid-March 2026, but Olivia remains detained. She has lost 20 pounds, experiences PTSD and major depressive disorder, and reports inhumane conditions including shackling, inadequate medical care, and racist harassment from other detainees. The facility holds approximately 5,600 immigrants, more than half children, and has faced calls from human rights advocates, pediatricians, and lawmakers to close it.

Supporting reports

• Man charged with firebomb plot linked to JDL 613 Brotherhood extremist group — Alexander Heifler, arrested by FBI and NYPD for allegedly plotting to firebomb the home of pro-Palestine activist Nerdeen Kiswani with molotov cocktails, is identified as a member of JDL 613 Brotherhood. The group, founded in late 2024 to revive the ideology of extremist rabbi Meir Kahane, has platformed a convicted terrorist (Chaim Ben Pesach) and its leaders have issued calls for violence against Palestinians, Arabs, and political opponents, including New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani. JDL 613 was incorporated as an LLC in February 2026 and operates chapters across multiple states.

Supporting reports

• Complaint filed: National Health Law Program v. Department of Health and Human Services (D.D.C.) — The National Health Law Program filed a FOIA lawsuit against HHS and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for failure to respond to requests submitted February 17, 2026, seeking records on data-sharing practices with DHS and ICE, including policies governing transfer of Medicaid enrollee information to ICE for immigration enforcement. The plaintiff alleges HHS and CMS departed from prior policy in summer 2025 and began sharing Medicaid data with ICE without full disclosure, and have failed to conduct adequate searches or respond to five sets of paired FOIA requests. The complaint seeks declaratory and injunctive relief, production of non-exempt records, Vaughn indexes for withheld materials, and attorneys' fees.

Supporting reports

• Board of Immigration Appeals issues removal order for Palestinian-rights activist — The Board of Immigration Appeals, which Trump has cut in half and stacked with his own appointees, issued a final order of removal for Mahmoud Khalil. In a statement, Khalil called the ruling "biased and politically motivated," stating "The only thing I am guilty of is speaking out against the genocide in Palestine – and this administration has weaponized the immigration system to punish me for it."

Supporting reports

• Complaint filed — Benitez v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security — Eight individual Latino residents of New York and a grassroots labor organization filed a putative class action complaint in the Eastern District of New York alleging that DHS, ICE, and CBP have adopted a policy and practice of stopping and warrantlessly arresting individuals based solely on perceived Latino ethnicity, without individualized reasonable suspicion of immigration violations. Plaintiffs assert violations of the Fourth Amendment, Fifth Amendment equal protection clause, and the Administrative Procedure Act, and seek class certification, declaratory judgments, injunctive relief, and expungement of records obtained through unlawful stops and arrests.