The White House is preparing to implement a significant shakeup within Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
According to several U.S. media outlets, the Trump administration is considering replacing some regional directors of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) with officials from U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Border Patrol division.
The stated objective is to increase the number of migrant arrests and deportations.
According to NBC News and CBS News, at least a dozen ICE leaders could be reassigned “within the coming days,” a move that could affect nearly half of the agency’s 25 field offices. Straight Arrow News confirmed this information, citing federal sources.
This internal repositioning aligns with the White House strategy to intensify immigration law enforcement. The president’s most influential advisers, including Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, have championed an explicit target since spring: 3,000 daily arrests by ICE. Recent figures fall short of this goal. Arrests typically number just over 1,000 per day. Occasional spikes have exceeded 2,000, according to data and reporting compiled by CBS News.
According to these same sources, the selection of Border Patrol leaders responds to a recurring White House criticism. ICE has not adopted methods seen as aggressive enough to meet the set targets. Federal officials, cited by NBC and CBS, indicate this shake-up would mainly target “underperforming” leadership or those resisting forceful tactics promoted by presidential advisers.
Debates over operational doctrine are intense. ICE has historically favored targeted arrests—focusing on individuals with criminal records, deportation orders, or documented violations. Border Patrol, whose main mission is border control, is known for more visible and dynamic operations. Officials mention, for example, “military-style” raids, including Black Hawk helicopter deployments or concealed units in rental vans during surveillance. These practices, already documented in recent months, have sparked legal challenges, especially in California.
The dispute extends beyond intervention philosophy to material resources. Two former ICE officials emphasize that the agency lacks certain equipment used by Border Patrol, particularly Black Hawk helicopters, which are military helicopters, creating a gap between numerical ambitions and available resources.
Since May, Stephen Miller has publicly set the bar at “a minimum of 3,000 arrests per day,” a significant jump from previous levels. This policy has led to intensified raids and checks, with record days exceeding 2,200 arrests, as reported by national media outlets. While the official target has not been reached, the upward trend is clear.
The effects are also measurable in the composition of those detained.
Local analyses (Axios Seattle, Colorado Public Radio, Florida Phoenix) show a marked increase in the proportion of individuals arrested without criminal records or pending charges—a reversal of previous years’ priorities. As a result, these developments are fueling political and legal challenges, with advocacy groups denouncing operations they say now prioritize “numbers, nothing but numbers.”
The announced shake-up comes amid turbulence at ICE’s leadership. In March, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi L. Noem appointed Todd Lyons as acting director and removed his predecessor, citing insufficient results. Many interpret this instability in the chain of command as a signal that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) intends to accelerate deportations.
In the field, operational pressure has intensified. Congress has increased funding, but human and logistical capacity have not kept pace, prompting leadership to temporarily reassign agents and to direct increased cooperation with other DHS components, including Border Patrol. Consistent reports show ICE agents now conduct extended deployments and spend more time on external operations than on administrative tasks.
The practical consequences of a massive replacement of regional directors would be multifaceted. The arrival of Border Patrol profiles could reorient planning toward more frequent raids and a more visible public presence—such as company parking lots, construction sites, and logistics hubs—to rapidly increase arrests. Standardization of methods could reduce the discretion that some offices had to adapt operations to local contexts. Finally, from a legal perspective, litigation risks could increase, as evidenced by class-action lawsuits already filed.
NGOs and unions also warn of the economic impact of large-scale sweeps across sectors such as agriculture, food service, and construction. The prospect of high daily quotas stirs concerns about labor shortages and worker rights violations.
Neither the White House nor DHS has published a list of officials up for reassignment or a timeline for transfers. CBS News sources stress one thing: regions “falling behind” on federal targets, or seen as reluctant toward certain tactics, would be prioritized.
By the newsroom — Based on reporting by NBC News and CBS News.
