The public overwhelmingly wants illegal immigrants accused of major crimes to be turned over to immigration officials, a harsh rebuke to sanctuary cities and relaxed immigration enforcement of the Biden administration.
In a new survey shared with Secrets, 61% said that illegal immigrants facing charges, including theft, arson, and drug and human trafficking, should be handed over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, after which they would likely face deportation.
The TIPP Poll, conducted for the National Sheriffs’ Association, however, found people to be more sympathetic to migrants who are not accused of major crimes but are still inside the United States illegally.
For them, just 35% want a transfer to ICE, while 41% said local law enforcement should “inform” the immigration agency and release them “into the local community.”
“Americans prefer a stricter approach when arresting alleged criminals and a slightly softer approach when arresting migrants who are here illegally but have not engaged in criminal activity,” said Mark Dannels, the sheriff of Cochise County, Arizona, and the chairman of the NSA’s border security committee.
In both cases, he stressed, the public wants ICE involved and notified and not ignored, as the administration and sanctuary proponents advocate.
The administration is under fire from law enforcement and several states for pulling back efforts under the Trump administration to detain and deport criminal illegal immigrants inside the nation, not just at the border. The administration is also reconsidering a cooperative program between local sheriffs and ICE.
In Arizona, Attorney General Mark Brnovich filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security challenging Biden’s 100-day pause on deportations.
The survey found little support for those changes, though Democrats were more favorable than Republicans.
Stuck in the middle has been law enforcement. Said Dannels in his analysis of the results, “The Biden administration’s nationwide immigration policies have brought interior immigration enforcement to a near standstill.”
He added, “The bottom line, these non-cooperation policies are not popular with the American public, and opposition to the policies crosses party lines. The true independent and moderate approach to immigration enforcement is to have good cooperation between state and federal officials.”
