Furious Trump overturns suspension of ICE traffic stops amid MAGA criticism
Trump Reverses ICE Traffic Stop Suspension Following MAGA Backlash
Furious Trump overturns suspension of ICE traffic – President Donald Trump expressed intense frustration regarding the temporary halt of most vehicle stops carried out by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to two individuals with knowledge of the situation. This policy shift occurred alongside mounting criticism from his political base, with influential MAGA commentators suggesting the administration was softening its stance on immigration enforcement. CNN reported on Tuesday that ICE personnel received instructions to substantially suspend vehicle stops until further guidance is issued.
Trump’s Immediate Response
White House border czar Tom Homan emphasized on Tuesday that the suspension on vehicle stops, with certain exceptions, represented a temporary adjustment following the ICE-related shootings in Houston and Maine. Senior Homeland Security officials have been evaluating interim operational changes in the wake of those fatal incidents while simultaneously facing pressure to fulfill Trump’s mass deportation objectives and the self-imposed target of 2,000 arrests daily.
The pause, even if only brief, eliminated a vital mechanism for achieving those goals. According to two people familiar with the sequence of events, neither Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin nor Homan informed Trump about the traffic stop suspension before implementing it. Trump became enraged after viewing media coverage of the temporary policy change, which portrayed him as weakening his immigration enforcement efforts.
Early Wednesday morning, Trump commanded that the suspension be overturned, sharing a message on Truth Social stating: “The Radical Left Dumocrats would like to see this done, but it won’t happen on my watch.” CNN contacted both the White House and the Department of Homeland Security requesting comment on the matter.
MAGA Voices Demand Action
Leading figures within the MAGA movement, including long-time Trump adviser Steve Bannon and conservative attorney Mike Davis, strongly condemned the decision to suspend traffic stops. During Bannon’s “War Room” program on Wednesday morning, Davis addressed Mullin directly: “You work for President Trump, you don’t work for Senate Democrats, you don’t work for Susan Collins. This guy needs to stop being a wimp, he needs to stop being weak, he needs to stop being stupid. If he’s not up to doing the job, get the hell out of the job and we’ll put someone there who can.”
The guidance has now been reversed, according to a White House official, representing another example of rapid policy shifts affecting ICE agents as they attempt to increase arrest numbers. Mullin indicated Wednesday that he stood with Trump, sharing an image of the president’s Truth Social post that reversed the guidance and posting on X: “Our #1 goal is to keep our officers safe and get criminals OFF our streets. Illegal aliens will be arrested and deported wherever they are. If you are here illegally, LEAVE NOW.”
Context Behind the Suspension
The guidance specifically applied to agents operating under Enforcement and Removal Operations, the ICE division responsible for arresting and deporting undocumented immigrants. It imposed a pause on initiating new stops, according to the source. Agents were instructed to collaborate with partner agencies to execute stops when carrying out criminal warrants on individuals inside vehicles.
Trump’s administration ordered the suspension after the fatal shootings of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston and Joan Sebastian Durán Guerrero in Biddeford, Maine, which triggered demands for independent investigations and renewed criticism of the agency. Both men were killed during federal immigration enforcement operations, though sources indicated that neither individual was the intended target of those specific operations.
In response to the shootings, the Department of Homeland Security also committed to rapidly deploying body cameras to officers across the nation. This story has been updated with additional developments and reporting. CNN’s Kit Maher contributed to this report.