President Donald Trump is pushing to get more local governments involved in deportation efforts. And while some so-called “sanctuary cities” are resisting, enrollment in a program to deputize local police for deportation efforts has shot up since the start of Trump’s term.
Florida is leading the charge. The state legislature passed a bill in 2022 that requires certain police departments to join into the agreements, but the Biden administration didn’t support the program, so no new agencies were added. Now that Trump has taken office, the effects are already playing out: A large-scale raid over the past week resulted in more than a thousand arrests in the state.
While many Republicans applauded the move, some lawmakers are skeptical that pulling police into deportation efforts is a good idea.