A Deep Dive into Chicago’s Immigration Enforcement Crisis

This week on Parsing Immigration Policy, Jessica Vaughan, the Center’s Director of Policy, unpacks the ongoing tension in Chicago, as federal and local law enforcement agencies continue to clash over illegal immigration and crime.

The Trump administration launched Operation “Midway Blitz” in September, sending ICE, Border Patrol, and other federal agents into the Chicago area in an effort to enforce immigration laws where state and local jurisdictions refuse to cooperate. Just back from Illinois, where she met with officers from across the state, Vaughan explains that they recognize the safety implications of unlimited illegal immigration and want to help federal authorities, but sanctuary policies from the city, county, and state tie their hands.

Vaughan highlights growing crime concerns in Chicago — a clear example, she says, of the public safety crisis created by the Biden administration’s open-border policies. For years, American and transnational gangs alike have taken advantage of the lack of interior enforcement, which is how Cook County became home to nearly 370,000 illegal immigrants, including criminals and violent gangs.

Today, federal pressure is finally squeezing criminal networks, but it’s making them more violent. With arrests in the Chicago area doubling under the Trump administration and doubling again during Operation Midway Blitz, ICE has taken roughly 3,000 illegal immigrants off the streets, many with criminal records. In response, some transnational gangs are lashing out and turning violent against federal officers threatening their operations.

This week’s episode is a deep dive into Chicago, but it’s not an isolated example — it’s a case study in what happens when politics blocks public safety. The same challenges are unfolding in other sanctuary cities across the country, like Los Angeles and Portland, Ore.

Host

Mark Krikorian is the Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies.

Guest

Jessica Vaughan the Director of Policy Studies for the Center for Immigration Studies.

Related

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Immigration Newsmaker Video: A Conversation with U.S. Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks

Intro Montage

Voices in the opening montage:

• Sen. Barack Obama at a 2005 press conference.
• Sen. John McCain in a 2010 election ad.
• President Lyndon Johnson, upon signing the 1965 Immigration Act.
• Booker T. Washington, reading in 1908 from his 1895 Atlanta Exposition speech.
• Laraine Newman as a "Conehead" on SNL in 1977.
• Hillary Clinton in a 2003 radio interview.
• Cesar Chavez in a 1974 interview.
• House Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaking to reporters in 2019.
• Prof. George Borjas in a 2016 C-SPAN appearance.
• Sen. Jeff Sessions in 2008 comments on the Senate floor.
• Candidate Trump in 2015 campaign speech.
• Charlton Heston in "Planet of the Apes".