Policy

Stephen Miller — the architect of family separation, the Muslim travel ban, and Trump's mass deportation policy — became White House chief of staff on Monday, after Republicans lost big in the midterm elections. Trump made the move days after admitting on CBS's 60 Minutes that his deportation crackdown was "too tough." For immigrants across the US, the promotion of the administration's most aggressive immigration hardliner to its top staff role carries direct consequences.

Stephen Miller — the man behind family separation and the Muslim travel ban — became White House Chief of Staff on November 9, 2026. He has publicly called for deportations "by the millions" and attacked the Supreme Court's ruling protecting birthright citizenship. For immigrants across every status category, his promotion to the most powerful staff role in the US government marks a direct escalation of enforcement pressure.

Stephen Miller, the architect of Trump's immigration crackdown, became White House chief of staff this week — giving him control over the entire executive agenda. He pledged "total devotion" to Trump and showed no sign of moderating his hardline stance. For immigrants with open cases, pending green cards, or DACA status, the shift in power at the top of the White House carries direct consequences.

You were charged with a crime in Colorado — not convicted, just charged — and under a proposed state law, police could have reported you to immigration authorities within 72 hours. On November 4, 2026, Colorado voters rejected Amendment 81, blocking a measure that would have required law enforcement to notify the Department of Homeland Security whenever someone accused of a violent crime had an unknown or unlawful immigration status.

Attempted sea crossings into Florida dropped more than 90 percent from fiscal year 2025 to FY2026, U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced at a Miami press conference. CBP Border Czar Tom Homan and Commissioner Rodney S. Scott credited increased enforcement at sea — and warned that maritime entry without authorization carries serious legal consequences. For anyone considering a sea crossing, the risks are now higher than ever.

Federal agents arrested 144 people in Las Vegas during a three-month operation targeting cartel-linked drug and weapons networks. The sweep involved HSI, the FBI, DEA, ATF, and local police — a combination that puts immigration enforcement in the same rooms as criminal enforcement. For immigrants in the Las Vegas area with any unresolved status issue, knowing your rights before an encounter is not optional.

You crossed into El Paso three years ago, when thousands of people made the same journey every day. Today, that same stretch of border looks almost nothing like it did then. CBP officials announced this week that El Paso Sector recorded fewer than 20,000 apprehensions in FY 2026 — down from more than 420,000 in FY 2023 — calling it the most secure border in U.S. history, with daily encounters now averaging under 50.

You're watching immigration news today and a $46 billion border wall is cutting through Big Bend, Texas — one of the most remote and bipartisan-protected landscapes in the country. A federal judge ordered construction to stop this month, but CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott told the Associated Press the project is "non-negotiable" and the administration has already asked the Supreme Court to override the pause. The fight over Big Bend signals how aggressively the Trump administration plans to enforce the border through the end of 2027.

Illegal border crossings in Arizona's Tucson Sector fell 96% between fiscal year 2024 and fiscal year 2026, CBP announced this week — from over 460,000 to roughly 16,000. Acting Deputy Chief Patrol Agent Stephen Cristinzio said no undocumented immigrants have been released into the US interior for 17 months. For immigrants with open cases or removal orders, the enforcement shift has direct consequences.

The US military's Active Denial System — a directed-energy weapon that causes a burning sensation on the skin — has been authorized for potential use at the US-Mexico border. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth signed a memo loaning the device to the Department of Homeland Security starting in September 2026. For asylum seekers and migrants approaching the southern border, this marks a significant escalation in the technology the US government may deploy.

Los Angeles election officials told a federal court that nearly 39% of people on the Justice Department's list of suspected non-citizen voters were born in the United States. The DOJ had given California a 48-hour deadline to segregate ballots from 20,000 people on the list — California refused, and the DOJ sued. The findings raise serious questions about how the government identifies non-citizens and who could be wrongly flagged.

You filed an asylum application months ago and have been living carefully, following every rule. Now DHS is reporting the most aggressive border enforcement in US history — 98,708 southwest border apprehensions in FY 2026, a 95% drop from the Biden era — and zero Border Patrol releases for the entire fiscal year. For immigrants already inside the US, this enforcement climate has direct consequences for detention, removal proceedings, and court hearings.

CBP Commissioner Rodney S. Scott and Italy's top customs official met in Washington on September 29, 2026, agreeing to share more data and coordinate enforcement on synthetic drugs and e-commerce shipments. For immigrants who travel between the U.S. and Italy or receive goods from abroad, the deal means more coordinated screening at ports of entry.

Marimar Martinez was shot seven times by a CBP agent during a 2025 Chicago immigration raid — then arrested at the hospital while still bleeding through her bandages. Federal prosecutors dropped the charges against her within a month. Now, one year after the shooting, she is suing the US government, and her lawyers say the agent's own account to the FBI was a lie.

You crossed a U.S. border, a camera scanned your face, and the system quietly checked whether you were supposed to be there. CBP announced it has now verified over one billion travelers through facial biometrics — and in the process flagged more than 600,000 visa overstays since 2018. For anyone whose authorized stay has ever been in question, the stakes of that two-second scan just became very clear.