10:51 a.m. ET, August 12, 2019
Cuccinelli on ICE enforcement: "You can expect to see more of that"
Asked about recent immigration raids carried out by ICE, acting director of US Citizenship and Immigration Services Ken Cuccinelli said, "You can expect to see more of that,"
Cucinelli added that ICE's "enforcement efforts are up."
Criminal investigations resulting from recent ICE raids in Mississippi are "still ongoing,” according to acting Director of USCIS Ken Cuccinelli, who said additional actions were likely.
Last week, CNN reported the White House has told ICE officials to conduct dozens more workplace enforcement operations this year, a senior immigration official with knowledge of the conversations told CNN.
White House spokesman Judd Deere said it "does not direct law enforcement operations from ICE ... or any federal law enforcement organization."
Some context: Last Wednesday, at least 680 undocumented immigrants were detained in a
record-setting sweep at food processing plants in Mississippi six cities. More than 300 of them had been released by Thursday, Bryan D. Cox, an ICE spokesman, said in a statement.
Paired with last week's
enforcement raids, Monday's announcement amounts to a concerted effort by the administration to limit legal immigration and crack down on illegal immigration.