JOEL ROSE, HOST:
The Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigration is yielding big results. Newly released data show the number of arrests by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement climbed to nearly 50,000 in July. It's part of a broader crackdown on illegal and legal immigration during Trump's second term. Here to talk about what's going on is NPR immigration correspondent Vanessa Romo. Hey, Vanessa.
VANESSA ROMO, BYLINE: Hi, Joel.
ROSE: Let's start with new data showing that ICE has made more arrests in July than any other month during the current administration. How has the agency been able to do that?
ROMO: Well, it's sort of a combination of factors. One, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin has shifted ICE's strategy, and he's really broadened when and where people are being arrested. So yes, it's still raids, but it's also happening a lot more quietly. It's happening at airports and ICE check-ins and immigration court.
And then second, ICE has a lot more manpower now. This year, they've added more than 12,000 new hires, doubling the size of the force. And many states and local law enforcement are actually now participating in the effort to arrest people through a program that's called 287(g). And these are agreements where ICE works with local law enforcement to make those arrests.
ROSE: Who are the people who are being arrested? I mean, I know a lot of Haitians lost protections from deportation recently. Is that showing up in these numbers?
ROMO: Yes, definitely. The Supreme Court ruled back in June that the Trump administration can strip 300,000 Haitians of what's called temporary protected status. And so that has shown up in the July figures. But the experts I spoke to say we're actually likely to see a lot more of those in the August data.
ROSE: With all of these arrests, there are also a lot of people being held in detention, right? Exactly, you know, where are all of these people being held?
ROMO: So you're right. As of July 11, there were nearly 66,000 immigrants being held in detention across the country, and that's according to the TRAC Project at Syracuse University. And that's really, really concerning for immigrant rights activists who say that detention center facilities are already overcrowded.
I've spoken with a lot of people in detention and their lawyers, and I've heard about how overcrowding exacerbates so many of the problems that already exist. You know, overcrowding can lead to unsanitary conditions and inconsistent medical care. Now, both the government and the private companies running these facilities have repeatedly defended their level of care that they provide. But with the massive infusion of cash from Congress to DHS and ICE specifically, the government is also planning on acquiring new detention centers to address that.
ROSE: Shifting to legal immigration, I know the State Department announced plans to potentially revoke up to 200,000 visas. Why?
ROMO: Right. This could be the largest visa revocation effort in U.S. history. And to be clear, it's not all visas. It would target tourist and business visas that were held by people who then later filed for asylum. And Tommy Pigott, the State Department spokesman, was on Morning Edition this week explaining that this, at least from the Trump administration's point of view, is really about eliminating what it calls fraudulent asylum cases.
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TOMMY PIGOTT: Fundamentally, this is meant to ensure that if someone is here on a short-term visa but indicates a desire to stay permanently, then that short-term visa no longer reflects actually what their desire is here. But it is important to point out that we do see a large number of frivolous asylum claims.
ROMO: So Pigott says that this change is intended to allow the government to get a better handle on who's in the country and for what purpose.
ROSE: Vanessa, in about 30 seconds that we have left, what will this mean for people who came to the U.S. under a short-term visa and then applied for asylum?
ROMO: So Pigott said that DHS will continue with those active asylum cases until they are adjudicated, but it is widely anticipated that the department's going to use those revoked visas against individuals during the interview process. But, you know, since the start of Trump's second term, ICE has been directed to arrest, detain and deport as many immigrants as possible. That has included instances where people who are legally present in the U.S. or in the process of adjusting their status have been detained.
ROSE: NPR's immigration correspondent Vanessa Romo. Thanks for your time, Vanessa.
ROMO: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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