WASHINGTON — The Department of Homeland Security has arrested two MS-13 gang leaders wanted in El Salvador for violent crimes that include murder, drug trafficking, and gang conspiracy.
One of these gang leaders, The Daily Wire can exclusively report, is Rene Escobar-Ochoa, arrested on July 9 during a coordinated enforcement operation in Omaha, Nebraska. Though U.S. Border Patrol encountered him as far back as 2023, he was allowed to remain in the country under President Joe Biden&#8217;s administration, DHS shared.
Escobar-Ochoa faces an &#8220;INTERPOL Red Notice&#8221; from El Salvador for conspiracy to commit murder and drug trafficking, DHS said.
<div id="attachment_945407" style="width: 319px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-ice-nabs-two-ms-13-ringleaders-in-midwest-raids/image001-3" rel="attachment wp-att-945407"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-945407" class="wp-image-945407 size-full" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/image001.png" alt="Rene Escobar-Ochoa, photo courtesy of DHS. " width="309" height="284" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/image001.png 309w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/image001-300x276.png 300w" sizes="(max-width: 309px) 100vw, 309px" /></a>Rene Escobar-Ochoa, photo courtesy of DHS.</div>
The second gang member, who is a Salvadoran national, is not named by <a href="https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/ice-arrests-one-el-salvadors-top-100-most-wanted-hiding-nebraska">ICE</a> but is on El Salvador&#8217;s 100 Most Wanted Fugitives list, according to DHS. Fox News first reported his arrest on Thursday afternoon.
He is wanted for five counts of murder, and U.S. authorities had previously convicted him for illegally crossing the border. He was arrested in Council Bluffs, Iowa.
<div id="attachment_945409" style="width: 318px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-ice-nabs-two-ms-13-ringleaders-in-midwest-raids/image002-4" rel="attachment wp-att-945409"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-945409" class="wp-image-945409 size-full" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/image002.png" alt="A Salvadoran national on El Salvador's 100 Most Wanted list. " width="308" height="315" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/image002.png 308w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/image002-293x300.png 293w" sizes="(max-width: 308px) 100vw, 308px" /></a>A Salvadoran national on El Salvador&#8217;s 100 Most Wanted list. Photo courtesy of DHS.</div>
“The Biden Administration allowed two ringleaders of MS-13, one of the most violent gangs in the world, straight into our country,&#8221; DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said on Thursday. &#8220;One of these depraved aliens is on El Salvador’s 100 Most Wanted Fugitives list and is wanted for five counts of murder. The other has an INTERPOL notice for drug trafficking.&#8221;
&#8220;These are the kinds of scum-bags sanctuary politicians are protecting and letting walk free on America’s streets,&#8221; McLaughlin added.
Both arrests were led by HSI Omaha with support from federal and international law enforcement partners, and ICE is holding both gang members in custody as ICE coordinates with El Salvadoran authorities to send them back to their home country to &#8220;face justice.&#8221;
DHS emphasizes that the MS-13 gang members&#8217; ability to get into the United States only highlights the danger that open border policies present to American citizens, as well as President Donald Trump&#8217;s administration&#8217;s efforts to stem the border crisis.
In the first 100 days of the second Trump administration, ICE <a href="https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/100-days-record-breaking-immigration-enforcement-us-interior">arrested</a> 66,463 illegal aliens and removed 65,682 aliens, &#8220;including criminals who threaten public safety and national security.&#8221; Three in four of the arrests were criminal illegal aliens, the agency said.
Criminal records of the aliens arrested include 9,639 assaults, 6,398 DWIs or DUIs, and 1,479 weapon offenses.
“We removed over 65,000 illegal aliens to countries across the world,” ICE acting Director Todd M. Lyons said in June when ICE released the numbers from the first 100 days. “We’re just 100 days into this administration and thanks to President Trump and Secretary Noem, ICE is using every tool at its disposal to enforce our country’s immigration laws and protect our communities.”

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EXCLUSIVE: ICE Nabs Two MS-13 ‘Ringleaders’ In Midwest Raids

Border Patrol

MS-13

Border Patrol agents arrested four people on Tuesday, suspected of planting tire spikes in front of vehicles used by federal immigration enforcement agents in Los Angeles in an attempt to impede their mission.
Border Patrol Chief Patrol Agent Gregory Bovino said that the individuals, Jenaro-Ernesto Ayala, 43; Jude Jasmine Jeannine Allard, 28; Sadot Jarnica, 54; and Daniel Montenegro, 30, were arrested for “interfering with federal agents conducting immigration enforcement operations.”
“They are facing felony charges for placing homemade tire spikes to disable law enforcement vehicles,” Bovino added. “Anyone who interferes with our lawful mission will be arrested.” The four were taken into custody after federal agents <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14889485/feds-photo-transgender-woman-attacks-ice-agents.html">conducted</a> a raid in a Home Depot parking lot in L.A.&#8217;s Van Nuys neighborhood.
An image shared by Bovino on social media shows homemade tire spikes, which appear to have been made by piercing nails through pieces of a garden hose or piping.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Border Patrol agents arrested (clockwise from top left) Jenaro-Ernesto Ayala age 43, Jude Jasmine Jeannine Allard age 28, Sadot Jarnica age 54, and Daniel Montenegro age 30, for interfering with federal agents conducting immigration enforcement operations. They are facing felony… <a href="https://t.co/DQR55jDchb">pic.twitter.com/DQR55jDchb</a>
— USBP Chief Patrol Agent Gregory K. Bovino (@USBPChiefELC) <a href="https://twitter.com/USBPChiefELC/status/1942758548171071662?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 9, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Two of those arrested, Ayala and Allard, were <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-07-09/advocates-for-day-laborers-arrested-after-tire-spikes-found-at-immigration-raid">identified</a> as “day laborer advocates” with a non-profit called the “Instituto de Educacion Popular del Sur De California.” The organization claims that the two individuals arrested were observing the federal law enforcement agents and have seen no evidence connecting them to the spikes.
The use of tire spikes against federal agents is one of the latest attempts by leftist agitators in Los Angeles to impede immigration enforcement.
One leftist activist, The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/leftwing-activist-network-distributes-riot-gear-to-los-angeles-anti-ice-agitators?author=Spencer+Lindquist&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=26&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Meet+The+Leftwing+Activist+Using+Social+Media+To+Funnel+Riot+Gear+To+Anti-ICE+Protests">revealed</a>, distributed respirator masks, gloves, and helmets to agitators on the “front lines” of the uprisings against ICE in Los Angeles. “Only grab gear if you are literally going out to the front lines TODAY,” the leftist activist said on social media.
Federal authorities arrested one man who was also found to have passed out respirators to rioters in Los Angeles. The suspect, who was <a href="https://x.com/USAttyEssayli/status/1933158095833964798">charged</a> with conspiracy to commit civil disorders, could face up to five years in prison.
L.A.-area leftists have also revealed the addresses of hotels that were housing ICE agents on social media, luring agitators to the locations who attempted to disrupt the agents&#8217; sleep by creating disturbances in parking lots outside.
&nbsp;

Tire spikes

Far-Left Activists In L.A. Arrested For Targeting Immigration Enforcement Vehicles With Tire Spikes

California

Crime

deportation

Immigration

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Politics

We have seen a massive spike in the number of attacks on ICE agents over the course of the last six months, since President Trump took office and decided we were actually going to enforce our border.
On Monday morning, a 27-year-old man with a rifle and tactical vest was killed after <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-gunman-in-tactical-gear-killed-after-opening-fire-on-border-patrol-agents?author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=BREAKING%3A+Gunman+In+Tactical+Gear+Killed+After+Opening+Fire+On+Border+Patrol+Agents">exchanging fire</a> with law enforcement officers at a border patrol facility in McAllen, Texas.
Border Czar Tom Homan has said attacks on ICE agents are up nearly <a href="https://grabien.com/story?id=535014">700%</a>. Border Patrol Chief Mike Banks said Left-wing anti-police rhetoric is having something to do with the uptick in violence, <a href="https://grabien.com/story?id=535050">asserting</a>, “All of the rhetoric and the false information that&#8217;s been put out by the Left is just increasing violence against our agents, and it&#8217;s just unacceptable.”
The Left has been claiming for a very long time that if you use rhetoric that is too colorful, if you say things that are borderline, this can lead to “stochastic terrorism.” What you&#8217;re doing is creating a permission structure for terrorism.
As I&#8217;ve said before, unless you are actually excusing or inciting violence, you are not responsible for that violence. With that said, when you raise the temperature, there will be people who bubble over.
That doesn&#8217;t mean Bernie Sanders is responsible for the congressional baseball shooter, for example, but what it does mean is that when you keep saying over and over and over that Republicans are going to kill your grandparents when they take away Medicare or some other such nonsense — and then somebody goes and shoots a bunch of Republican congresspeople for playing baseball — at the very least, you should consider whether the language you used was well-calibrated.
This is the problem. The language currently being used by the Left with regard to ICE or Border Patrol is extraordinary. It sets up a permission structure that causes people who are unhinged to take their behavior to the next level.
In the same way, if you keep saying President Donald Trump is Hitler, at some point, someone might take you seriously and go and try to kill Hitler.
<h3><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/bss-ep-2233?elementPosition=3&amp;row=2&amp;rowHeadline=Latest+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WATCH: The Ben Shapiro Show</a></h3>
Here are just a few examples of members of the high-ranking Left going after ICE and Border Patrol in language that is completely unhinged.
Failed Vice-Presidential candidate <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVOrOkxeCD4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tim Walz</a>: “Donald Trump&#8217;s modern-day Gestapo is scooping folks up off the streets. They&#8217;re in unmarked vans, wearing masks, being shipped off to foreign torture dungeons. No chance to mount a defense. Not even a chance to kiss a loved one goodbye.”
Boston Mayor <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1930630848832831496">Michelle Wu</a>: “I don&#8217;t know of any police department that routinely wears masks. We know that there are other groups that routinely wear masks.” 
Los Angeles Mayor <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/newsom-files-emergency-motion-to-block-military-deployment-in-la/">Karen Bass</a>: “Which is why I say that I feel like we have all been in Los Angeles a part of a grand experiment to see what happens when the federal government decides they want to roll up on a state, or roll up on a city, and take over.&#8221;
Rep. <a href="https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2025/06/12/dem-rep-goldman-dhs-agents-are-using-gestapo-like-tactics/">Dan Goldman</a> (D-NY): “The combination of these Gestapo-like tactics with the fact that these are nonviolent, non-criminal immigrants doing things the right way &#8230;”
Rep. Alexandria <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/transcript/rep-alexandria-ocasio-cortez-blasts-conditions-at-migrant-detention-centers">Ocasio-Cortez</a> (D-NY): “I mean, in that last facility, I was not safe from the officers in that facility.”
Rep. <a href="https://x.com/DailyCaller/status/1933172641646416273">Stephen Lynch</a> (D-MA): “You know, my dad served in the Second World War. He fought the Nazis in Northern Africa. He fought the Nazis on the Italian peninsula. And I think he&#8217;s looking down right now, and he&#8217;s happy that I&#8217;m fighting today&#8217;s Nazis.”
There are a lot of prominent Democratic figures using this kind of rhetoric, and that language is going to have some sort of consequence.
It doesn&#8217;t mean they&#8217;re responsible for a person trying to shoot Border Patrol agents, but if you keep increasing the temperature and if you keep excusing violence on the other end — which, by the way, the Democrats have been doing for quite a long while, ranging from the sort of violence we saw during the BLM riots of 2020 to excusing the alleged murderous actions of Luigi Mangione on the streets of New York — you&#8217;re obviously going to lead to an uptick in violence.
You may not like President Trump&#8217;s immigration policy; that is your prerogative. But it is also the law of the land. You are not allowed to cross our southern border illegally and simply live here.
That is the law of the land. If you don&#8217;t like that law, you should talk to your member of Congress. If you don&#8217;t like that law, then you should try to change that law.
That&#8217;s how it works in a democracy.
You don&#8217;t get to simply call the people who are enforcing the law “Nazis” and “Gestapo agents” and then act surprised when people attack the supposed Nazis and Gestapo in our midst.

Local New York Officials Observe Immigration Court Proceedings Amid ICE Arrests

From Words To Bullets: The Cost Of Calling ICE ‘Nazis’

From Words To Bullets: The Cost Of Calling ICE 'Nazis'

Democrats

Donald Trump

illegal immigrants

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

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Opinion

President Trump

A man ambushed and opened fire on Border Patrol agents in McAllen, Texas, on Monday before he was killed by local police and federal agents who returned fire.
The Department of Homeland Security told Fox News that the shooter, armed with a rifle and tactical gear, attacked agents at the entrance of a Border Patrol facility. The shooting appeared to be &#8220;a purposeful ambush/attack against federal agents,&#8221; according to authorities. Two police officers were injured, including one who was shot in the knee, and a Border Patrol employee was also wounded, <a href="https://x.com/DHSgov/status/1942249841167303061">according</a> to the DHS.
“This morning, an individual opened fire at the entrance of the United States Border Patrol sector annex in McAllen, Texas. Both Border Patrol agents and local police helped neutralize the shooter. This is an ongoing investigation led by the FBI. More information will be shared as it becomes available,” the DHS said in a statement.
The shooter, who has not been identified, was reported missing on Monday morning, according to McAllen Police Chief Victor Rodriguez, The New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/07/us/mcallen-airport-shooter-border-patrol.html">reported</a>. Authorities found other weapons in the shooter&#8217;s vehicle, which had been spray-painted with a message that law enforcement was trying to decipher, according to the Times.
Authorities are expected to hold a press conference addressing the shooting later on Monday.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
BREAKING: Three federal &amp; TX law enforcement sources tell me an active shooter with a rifle &amp; tactical gear ambushed Border Patrol agents as they arrived at a Border Patrol annex facility in McAllen, TX this morning. Local police and federal agents returned fire, killing him. I’m… <a href="https://t.co/xL3qw5G6OW">pic.twitter.com/xL3qw5G6OW</a>
&mdash; Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) <a href="https://twitter.com/BillMelugin_/status/1942230364073967869?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 7, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
This article has been updated with additional information.

Counterterrorism strategy at the US-Mexico border

BREAKING: Gunman In Tactical Gear Killed After Opening Fire On Border Patrol Agents

Shooting

Texas

U.S.

U.S. Border Patrol experienced fewer encounters with illegal aliens last month than agents did on a daily basis under the Biden administration, Border Czar Tom Homan pointed out.
Federal authorities had a total of 6,070 encounters with illegal aliens attempting to enter the United States in the entire month of June, marking a radical drop-off from the Biden era.
“That is less than a single day under Biden. As a matter of fact, the total number of encounters is less than half of a single day under Biden on many days,” Homan <a href="https://x.com/RealTomHoman/status/1940156659084796257">asserted</a> in a post on X.
The figure marks a drastic decline from June 2024 under the Biden administration, when Border Patrol had more than 87,000 encounters with illegal aliens on the northern and southern borders combined. The figures were even higher in 2023 and 2022 under the Biden administration, when Border Patrol had 100,000 and 193,000 encounters, respectively.
June’s figures indicate a 93.1 percent drop in border encounters since 2024 and a 94 percent and 97 percent increase when compared to 2023 and 2022.
Homan also explained that, of those encountered on the border, not a single one was let into the United States. “None of the 6,070 were released into the U.S. ZERO. President Trump has created the most secure border in the history of the nation and the data proves it,” Homan added. “We have never seen numbers this low.”
&#8220;The interior arrests and consequences help to drive down illegal immigration,&#8221; he went on to say in his post on social media.
The Border Patrol similarly <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/zero-illegal-aliens-released-into-u-s-in-may-by-customs-and-border-protection?author=Spencer+Lindquist&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=20&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Zero+Illegal+Aliens+Released+Into+U.S.+In+May+By+Customs+And+Border+Protection">indicated</a> that it did not allow a single individual into the United States in the month of May. Agents encountered 8,725 illegal aliens during the month, a sharp 93 percent drop off from May 2024 under the Biden administration, when agents encountered a whopping 117,000 illegal aliens between ports of entry and released roughly 62,000 into the interior of the country.
“This administration has seen the fastest improvement in American border security of all time,” Customs and Border Protection said after announcing May’s border numbers.

Tom Homan

Border Patrol Saw Fewer Migrant Encounters Last Month Than One Single Day Under Biden, Homan Says

Border

Illegal Immigration

mass immigration

U.S. Border Patrol agents found and shut down a massive tunnel linking Tijuana, Mexico, to San Diego, California, built to unlawfully smuggle narcotics into the United States.
The tunnel spanned nearly 3,000 feet, extending more than 1,000 feet into the United States, with a projected exit point near a warehouse in San Diego, California. It featured a sophisticated ventilation system, electrical wiring, lighting, and a rail track for transporting drugs. In February, the Trump administration designated six Mexican drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations.
“As we continue to strengthen the nation’s air, and maritime border security, it’s not surprising that foreign terrorist organizations would resort to underground routes,” <a href="https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/local-media-release/san-diego-sector-border-patrol-uncovers-sophisticated-cross-border">said</a> Jeffrey D. Stalnaker, the Acting Chief Patrol Agent of the San Diego Sector. “Disruption of narcotics smuggling tunnels is critical to protecting American lives.”
Federal authorities first discovered the tunnel while it was under construction in April, sending the San Diego Border Patrol Sector Tunnel Team in to investigate the project. Those agents, Border Patrol says, encountered various barricades that “were placed haphazardly by the tunnel workers” in an effort to prevent law enforcement from investigating the passageway into America.
Mexican authorities also investigated the tunnel and discovered the origin point in a residence in Tijuana.
“I’m grateful for the exceptional work of the Tunnel Team agents who placed themselves in danger, as well as the cooperation of our Mexican law enforcement partners,” Stalnaker said.
The tunnel will now be filled with thousands of gallons of concrete to prevent it from being used by drug smugglers. Mexican cartels have carved tunnels into the United States for decades. Nearly 100 tunnels have been discovered and obstructed since 1993 in the San Diego area alone.
The detection of the tunnel comes as the Trump administration has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/zero-illegal-aliens-released-into-u-s-in-may-by-customs-and-border-protection?author=Spencer+Lindquist&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Zero+Illegal+Aliens+Released+Into+U.S.+In+May+By+Customs+And+Border+Protection">drastically reduced</a> the number of illegal border crossings and placed financial pressure on the cartels. The Treasury Department <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/treasury-dept-sanctions-five-key-leaders-of-mexican-drug-cartel?author=Spencer+Lindquist&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Treasury+Dept+Sanctions+Five+Key+Leaders+Of+Mexican+Drug+Cartel">unveiled sanctions</a> against five leaders of the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion on Wednesday. The move came after the federal agency announced sanctions on leaders of the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trumps-treasury-dept-launches-sanctions-targeting-sinaloa-cartel">Sinaloa Cartel</a> and the <a href="https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sb0146">Cartel del Noreste</a>.

Customs and Border Protection

Secret Tunnel Built To Smuggle Drugs Into U.S. Shut Down By Border Patrol

cartel

drug cartel

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U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) did not release a single illegal alien into the United States during the month of May, a new report from the federal immigration enforcement agency revealed.
The figure lies in sharp contrast to May of 2024 under the Biden administration, when approximately 62,000 illegal aliens were released into the United States.
CBP agents encountered just 8,725 illegal aliens attempting to enter the United States between ports of entry last month. The number marks a whopping 93 percent decline since last May, when immigration enforcement authorities encountered more than 117,000 illegal aliens between ports of entry on the southwestern border.
Acting Commissioner of CBP Pete Flores <a href="https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/national-media-release/cbp-releases-may-2025-monthly-update">touted the success</a>, highlighting the work of the Trump administration.
“Under the leadership of this administration, CBP has received historic support resulting in another 93% decrease in illegal crossings along the southwest border this month when compared with last year,” Flores said. “Border numbers continue to trend at historic lows, reinforcing the sustained success of our enforcement efforts in securing the homeland and protecting American communities.”
“This administration has seen the fastest improvement in American border security of all time,” Customs and Border Protection posted on X.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Thanks to the tireless efforts and diligent work of the men and women of CBP and the leadership of <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/Sec_Noem?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Sec_Noem</a>, USBP released 0 (not a single one) illegal aliens into our country in May, down from more than 62,000 in May of last year.
This administration has seen the…
— CBP (@CBP) <a href="https://twitter.com/CBP/status/1935033738087268657?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 17, 2025</a></blockquote>
CBP agents also seized hundreds of pounds of deadly drugs, including 718 pounds of fentanyl. The law enforcement agency noted that cocaine seizures jumped by 19 percent from April to May, while heroin seizures surged 191 percent during the same period of time.
Border numbers began to plummet almost immediately upon President Donald Trump taking office at the start of this year. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/border-crossings-plunge-90-to-historic-lows-under-trump-crackdown">Data</a> from the first weeks in February revealed that border crossings had already dropped 90 percent in the first few weeks of the new presidency.
“​We haven’t had numbers this low since the 1960s,” Mark Krikorian, the executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, remarked at the time.
The decrease in illegal border crossings proved to be even more drastic than the early data suggested, with Vice President JD Vance <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/vance-does-victory-lap-at-border-all-it-took-was-a-new-president">celebrating</a> a 98 percent reduction in illegal immigration during a visit to the border in early March.

Zero Illegal Aliens Released Into U.S. In May By Customs And Border Protection

Customs and Border Protection (CPB)

A union representing nearly 20,000 Border Patrol agents on Monday declared its support for President Donald Trump&#8217;s &#8220;big, beautiful bill,&#8221; hailing the legislation as an “investment” in America’s border security.
“The men and women of the National Border Patrol Council are proud to announce our support for the House One Big Beautiful Bill,” the group&#8217;s president, Paul Perez, told The Daily Wire. “This legislation provides a once in a generation investment in the border security of our great country and will make America safer.”
The legislation not only modifies the tax code, but also provides funding that would allow Customs and Border Protection to expand its operations.
“This legislation provides for thousands of new patrol vehicles, the hiring of thousands of additional Border Patrol Agents, and improves retention and recruitment by using incentives and protecting benefits, along with unprecedented investments in physical infrastructure, such as roads along our borders,” Perez added. “The NBPC has no doubt this legislation will greatly help us to do our jobs more safely and effectively.”
Funding for physical infrastructure, the Republicans on the House Homeland Security Committee say, would <a href="https://homeland.house.gov/2025/04/27/house-homeland-security-committee-releases-text-for-budget-reconciliation-recommendations/">support</a> the construction of “701 miles of primary wall, construction of 900 miles of river barriers, 629 miles of secondary barriers, and replacement of 141 miles of vehicle and pedestrian barriers.”
The White House <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/05/one-big-beautiful-bill-is-a-once-in-a-generation-chance/">adds</a> that the funding will support “at least one million annual removals” of illegal aliens and the hiring of 10,000 new Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) personnel.
The House Judiciary Committee <a href="https://judiciary.house.gov/media/press-releases/big-beautiful-border-security">says</a> the funding would allow ICE to expand its capacity and allow it to detain 100,000 illegal aliens at any given time.
Beyond funding Border Patrol, ICE, and border wall construction, the legislation also takes other steps to discourage illegal immigration. If passed, the bill would impose a 5% tax on money sent out of the country by illegal aliens and non-citizens.
Experts told The Daily Wire that the tax on such transactions would <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/a-new-tax-on-money-sent-abroad-could-dry-up-drug-cartel-cash-and-penalize-illegal-immigration?author=Spencer+Lindquist&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=4&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=This+New+Tax+Could+Stop+Illegal+Immigration+And+Keep+Money+From+Cartels">penalize</a> illegal immigration and cut into the cash flows that are sent to the Mexican drug cartels.
“Placing a fee on remittances is crucial because the more money that is smuggled back into Mexico, the stronger the cartels become,” Ira Mehlman, the Media Director for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, told The Daily Wire.
Trump’s bill would also kick an estimated 1.4 million illegal aliens off of Medicaid, the government-funded healthcare program. The legislation, the Trump White House <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/05/one-big-beautiful-bill-is-a-once-in-a-generation-chance/">says</a>, “eliminates waste, fraud, and abuse by ending benefits” for illegal aliens “who are gaming the system.”

Border Patrol Agent

EXCLUSIVE: Border Patrol Union Praises ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ For Border Security Investments

Trump

MixCollage-20-Mar-2025-12-17-PM-5375

Got-Away Traffic Drops Like A Rock At This Notorious Stretch Of The Border

Southern Border

Trump Administration

The United States Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) has taken over Washington, D.C., office space that once served as headquarters for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
“CBP has signed a license agreement to occupy approximately 390,000 usable square feet in the USAID tower,” a CBP spokesman told <a href="https://www.politico.com/playbook" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Politico</a>.
The agreement comes after the Trump administration has gutted USAID in its previous form to restrict its funding priorities and move it under direct oversight by the State Department and its head, Marco Rubio.
The move also reflects a change in vision and priorities for the new administration, which has taken a more critical approach to foreign aid while focusing much more on the immigration crisis that gripped the country during the previous administration. Earlier this week, White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Stephen Miller <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/stephen-miller-pledges-full-might-of-dhs-doj-dod-to-be-used-in-mass-deportation-effort" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reiterated</a> the administration’s commitment to border security and mass deporting illegal aliens.
“I can promise you that the full might of the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, the Department of Defense, and every element and instrument of national power will be used to remove with speed all criminal illegals from the soil of the United States of America, to enforce final removal orders, and to ensure that this country is for American citizens and those that legally belong in this country,” Miller said during a White House press briefing.
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In its first weeks in office, the Trump administration has deported roughly 11,000 illegal aliens while creating space at places such as the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base to hold more deportees as the administration works to return aliens to their countries of origin.
Meanwhile, illegal entries into the United States through the southern border have plummeted since Trump was elected.
“According to newly released data from Customs and Border Protection (CBP), just 61,465 illegal aliens were apprehended at the southern border during the entire month of January — a 36% decline from the previous month. That number includes 29,116 apprehended along the border — the lowest since May 2020 — and 32,349 at ports of entry,” the White House said in a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/02/illegal-border-crossings-plummeted-in-january/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a> this week.

USAID

Border Patrol Takes Over USAID’s DC Headquarters

Deportations

Washington D.C.

Illegal border crossing at the southern border of the United States “plummeted” in January, falling precipitously as President Donald Trump returned to office in what the White House is calling &#8220;the Trump Effect.&#8221;
Apprehensions of illegal border crossings into the United States dropped 36 percent last month, falling to 61,465, new data from Customs and Border Patrol indicates. The figure, which includes 29,116 apprehensions on the border and another 32,349 at ports of entry, is the lowest since May 2020, when the COVID response virtually shut down the southern border as new restrictions had been implemented.
The rate dropped particularly rapidly after Trump assumed office on January 20, the White House pointed out in a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/02/illegal-border-crossings-plummeted-in-january/">press release</a> on Tuesday.
“From Jan. 21 through Jan. 31, the number of U.S. Border Patrol apprehensions along the southwest border dropped 85% from the same period in 2024, according to data obtained by ABC News. In the 11 days after Jan. 20, migrants apprehended at ports of entry declined by 93%.”
The data marks a stark contrast with the Biden administration, which had an average of 141,710 in the month of January, with the Trump administration calling those crossings “the result of dangerous policies that ferried illegal aliens directly into our communities, where they were allowed to stay indefinitely.”
The drop in illegal border crossings comes as the Trump administration has taken a range of different actions to disincentivize illegal immigration, most notably by enforcing federal immigration law within the interior of the country and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ice-arrests-11000-illegal-aliens-in-first-18-days-of-trump-administration">deporting</a> illegal aliens.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
From drug traffickers in Baltimore to cartel members in Houston, ICE is deporting criminals illegal aliens across the country.<a href="https://twitter.com/MaryMargOlohan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MaryMargOlohan</a> and I reported for <a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@realDailyWire</a> on some of the worst offenders captured this Sunday. 🧵 <a href="https://t.co/jDlZOJmx3C">pic.twitter.com/jDlZOJmx3C</a>
— Spencer Lindquist 🇺🇸 (@SpencerLndqst) <a href="https://twitter.com/SpencerLndqst/status/1884629928341119380?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 29, 2025</a></blockquote>
The administration has also <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/united-states-begins-flying-illegal-aliens-to-guantanamo-bay">transported criminal illegal aliens</a> to the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, with preparations underway for the facility to hold up to 30,000 detainees.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem recently <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/dont-even-think-about-it-kristi-noem-issues-harsh-warning-to-illegal-immigrants-coming-to-u-s?topStoryPosition=undefined">announced</a> that the federal agency would launch “a nationwide and international multimillion-dollar ad campaign warning illegal aliens to leave our country NOW or face deportation with the inability to return to the US.”
“Let me deliver a message from President Trump to the world. If you are considering entering America illegally, don’t even think about it. Let me be clear. If you come to our country and you break our laws, we will hunt you down,” Noem said in a video accompanying the announcement. “Criminals are not welcome in the United States. For too long, weak leadership has left our borders wide open, flooding our communities with drugs, human trafficking, and violent criminals.”
RELATED: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/dont-even-think-about-it-kristi-noem-issues-harsh-warning-to-illegal-immigrants-coming-to-u-s">&#8216;Don&#8217;t Even Think About It&#8217;: Kristi Noem Issues Harsh &#8216;Warning&#8217; To Illegal Immigrants Coming To U.S.</a>

Border Patrol Agents

Trump Admin Celebrates Steep Drop In Illegal Border Crossings

Kristi Noem

President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/donald-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donald Trump</a> is set to sign an executive order directing the Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security to prepare the Guantanamo Bay detention camp to hold as many as 30,000 criminal illegal aliens.
Trump announced his impending executive order at a signing event for the Laken Riley Act, an immigration security bill named after a 22 year-old victim of an illegal alien murderer. The Guantanamo Bay detention facility, located in Cuba, has historically been used to detain terror suspects. Shortly after taking office, Trump signed an executive order designating cartels as Foreign Terror Organizations.
“Today, I’m also signing an Executive Order to instruct the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security to begin preparing the 30,000 person migrant facility at Guantanamo Bay … to detain the worst criminal illegal aliens threatening the American people.”
“Some of them are so bad we don’t even trust the countries to hold them,” he said of criminal illegal aliens. “We don’t want them coming back so we’re going to send them out to Guantanamo. This is going to double our capacity immediately.”
“I hereby direct the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Homeland Security to take all appropriate actions to expand the Migrant Operations Center at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay to full capacity to provide additional detention space for high-priority criminal aliens unlawfully present in the United States, and to address attendant immigration enforcement needs identified by the Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security,” Trump’s executive order reads. 
It goes on to add that the memo “is issued in order to halt the border invasion, dismantle criminal cartels, and restore national sovereignty.”
Trump’s comments came at an <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmxgNgNrhf4">event</a> at which the President signed the Laken Riley Act, an immigration bill named after the 22 year-old Georgia nursing student who was brutally murdered by an illegal alien from Venezuela last year while she was out for a morning jog.
The legislation will require the detention of illegal aliens charged with theft or violent crimes. The bill received bipartisan support in both chambers of Congress. “She’s going to save a lot of lives, she’s going to be responsible for saving a lot of lives,” Trump said to the parents of Riley at the event. He also accused the previous administration of opening America’s borders and allowing “world’s most dangerous criminals straight into” American communities.
Under the Trump administration, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has set out to capture and repatriate illegal aliens, with a special focus on illegal aliens convicted of other crimes in addition to illegally crossing the border into the United States.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
From drug traffickers in Baltimore to cartel members in Houston, ICE is deporting criminals illegal aliens across the country.<a href="https://twitter.com/MaryMargOlohan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MaryMargOlohan</a> and I reported for <a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@realDailyWire</a> on some of the worst offenders captured this Sunday. 🧵 <a href="https://t.co/jDlZOJmx3C">pic.twitter.com/jDlZOJmx3C</a>
— Spencer Lindquist 🇺🇸 (@SpencerLndqst) <a href="https://twitter.com/SpencerLndqst/status/1884629928341119380?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 29, 2025</a></blockquote>
ICE caught several criminal illegal aliens just this Sunday, The Daily Wire reported. Federal immigration enforcement agents caught a member of the MS-13 cartel, the violent Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, a man in possession of child pornography, a drug and weapons trafficker, and multiple violent criminals across the country on Sunday.
UPDATE: This article has been updated to provide text of the executive order after it was signed.

President Trump To Use Guantanamo Bay For Illegal Alien Detention

Guantanamo Bay

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