What Trump’s Mass Deportation Plan Could Look Like

If he wins the election in 2024, Donald Trump promises to establish a mass deportation program intended to remove millions of undocumented immigrants from the United States. The plan promises a return to hardline immigration policies from his first term in office-including the "Remain in Mexico" program, and increased resources for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE. Trump's plan would further increase the use of detention facilities and accelerate the process of deportation. Such a plan, critics say, would pose significant logistical and humanitarian challenges, straining both legal and social systems.
Trump's mass deportation proposal has revolved around ramping up deportations with expedited procedures for quick removal. That would come along with heavy reliance on expanded detention facilities and an expanded workforce in ICE in response to surging deportations. The Trump administration would focus on prioritizing those with criminal records, but the larger swath of the plan would involve many undocumented immigrants, many of whom do not have criminal backgrounds.
A key plank of Trump's plan would see him reinstate the "Remain in Mexico" policy, whereby asylum seekers have to stay in Mexico while their cases are processed. This rule, which had to overcome legal and logistical obstacles during the first Trump term, would be expanded, if the critics are right, to handle what is expected to be a surge of asylum seekers. Critics say this rule exposes the especially vulnerable migrants to perilous conditions and extends wait times to seek justice.
In addition to this is the plan to scale back on sanctuary cities, in which local governments only somewhat cooperate with federal immigration enforcement. He plans on increasing pressure through legal and financial measures to make the cities comply with federal immigration laws. According to his supporters, all these will lead to more profound enforcement across the country, which in turn, will decrease illegal immigration.
Logistically, such a deportation effort would take significant leaps in federal funding and coordination amongst multiple governmental agencies. If large in number targeted for removal, the hearings might overwhelm the legal system, as detention centers and border resources. Critics contend it would create humanitarian concerns and unduly burden the country's system of justice, while supporters see it as a needed measure to uphold immigration laws.
Mass deportation is expected to be at the heart of the 2024 election, fiercely supported or criticized. His plan plays to his far-right base but has pitted him against immigrant advocacy groups, legal experts, and those concerned about its humanitarian impacts. The nature of the next election will define the future course of US immigration policy, one of the most aggressive stands in recent history.