Immigration Policy & Enforcement - The Trump administration invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, a law not used since World War II, to deport 238 Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador, claiming they were terrorists and gang members [1][23] - Internal government documents revealed that 75% of the deported Venezuelans had no criminal records [13] - The Trump administration's mass deportation plan aimed to prioritize those with convictions and national security threats [10] - A Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman stated that many deported individuals without criminal records were considered terrorists, human rights abusers, and gangsters [13] - The Trump administration paid El Salvador's government $6 million to house prisoners [30] - The Biden administration has carried out over 4 million expulsions and deportations, more than the Trump administration [74][113] Border Security & Illegal Immigration - The US-Canadian border is the longest international land border, stretching over 5,500 miles [36] - In the Swanton sector, illegal crossings increased to levels not seen in the previous 17 years, with over 19,000 migrants arrested from 97 countries [45] - Migrants pay smugglers approximately $3,000 each to cross the northern border [41] - The Sinaloa cartel is involved in human and drug smuggling operations across the northern border [38][40] - US Customs and Border Protection seized 43 pounds of fentanyl at the northern border last year, compared to over 21,000 pounds at the US-Mexico border [43] - Last year, there were fewer than 24,000 illegal crossings from Canada, while the southern border saw 1.5 million illegal crossings [44] - Texas has committed over $11 billion to Operation Lonear, aimed at deterring illegal crossings [125] - US Customs and Border Protection recorded 2.5 million instances of detaining or turning away people attempting to cross into the US from Mexico last year [127] - Chinese migrants are the fastest-growing group attempting to cross the border illegally [128] - In 2022, the US granted only 160,000 temporary visas to Chinese nationals, a significant decrease from 2.2 million in 2016 [148] - Last year, US Customs and Border Protection reported 37,000 Chinese citizens were apprehended crossing illegally from Mexico into the US, 50 times more than 2 years earlier [134] Mass Deportation - A study by the American Immigration Council found that mass deportation could reduce the GDP by 1.7% trillion [71] - One estimate suggests it would cost $88 billion to deport a million people a year [87] - It costs $150 a night to detain people awaiting deportation, with an average stay of 46 days [83] - One deportation flight can cost $250,000 [83]