Free Republic

For faith leaders supporting and ministering to anxious immigrants across the United States, 2025 was fraught with challenges and setbacks. For many in these religious circles, the coming year could be worse. The essence of their fears: President Donald Trump has become harsher with his contemptuous rhetoric and policy proposals, blaming immigrants for problems from crime to housing shortages and, in a social media post, demanding “REVERSE MIGRATION.” Haitians who fled gang violence in their homeland, as well as Afghans allowed entry after assisting the U.S. in Afghanistan before the Taliban takeover, now fear that their refuge in America may...

For over a year, Elías Padilla had been saving up to make the journey from Honduras to the United States as an undocumented immigrant. As an Uber driver in the snarled streets of the capital, Tegucigalpa, it hasn't been easy for him to put money aside. On bad days he makes as little as $12 (£9) in 12 hours. Now, though, his plans are on hold. The images of undocumented immigrants in major US cities being dragged away by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, their wrists in zip-ties, have deterred at least one would-be immigrant in Central America from...

Los Angeles Democratic Mayor Karen Bass expressed disappointment and concern Friday with Hispanics joining Border Patrol – arguing they’re only doing it for the paycheck. “Well, in a way, I think it’s sad,” Bass said of a CNN report on Border Patrol’s new recruits, many of which are Hispanic. “I think that those Border Patrol agents are going to have a difficult time when they’re out in the field and they see what actually happens in real life separate from their training,” the mayor told “The Situation Room” host Wolf Blitzer. The report Bass was asked to respond to included...

The Department of Homeland Security is now offering $3,000 to illegal migrants who voluntarily self-deport from the U.S. before the new year, it is being reported. According to CBS News, DHS has tripled its "exit bonus" from $1,000 to $3,000 for illegal migrants who sign up with the federal government and depart by Dec. 31, 2025, using the rebranded "CBP Home" app. DHS says eligible participants will also receive free airfare to their home countries and may have certain civil fines or penalties waived if they leave voluntarily. The stipend would be paid after the U.S. government confirms the individual...

Border Patrol officials said the first mile of the new "smart border wall" has been completed in Arizona's Tucson Sector... ...Earlier this year, CBP and the Department of Homeland Security announced 10 new contracts valued at $4.5 billion to add a "Smart Wall" along the southwest border. One of the contracts was to construct 23 miles of new secondary border wall and 66 miles of system attributes in Arizona. "The Smart Wall is a border security system that combines steel barriers, waterborne barriers, patrol roads, lights, cameras, and advanced detection technology to give Border Patrol agents the best tools in...

Today, President Donald J. Trump will award the newly established Mexican Border Defense Medal to U.S. service members for their extraordinary work to safeguard our nation’s southern border and uphold American sovereignty.Under President Trump’s decisive leadership, the southern border has undergone a profound transformation to turn back the invasion unleashed by the Biden Administration — achieving levels of security unseen in decades. By reversing Biden-era failed policies and swiftly implementing robust enforcement, the Trump Administration has restored order, deterred illegal entries, and protected American communities from the threats posed by unchecked migration, transnational crime, and fentanyl trafficking.Here’s what you need...

The Trump administration announced plans Wednesday to add another militarized zone to the southern border — this time in California — as part of a major shift that has thrust troops into border enforcement with Mexico like never before. The Department of Interior said it would transfer jurisdiction along most of California's border with Mexico to the Navy to reinforce "the historic role public lands have played in safeguarding national sovereignty." The Interior Department described the newest national defense area in California as a high-traffic zone for unlawful crossings by immigrants. But Border Patrol arrests along the southern U.S. border...

… Among other requirements, Minneapolis' separation ordinance forbids Minneapolis police from taking part in immigration enforcement or assisting ICE agents. It also prevents city employees from investigating an individual when the only law they've violated is being in the United States illegally. City employees are also restricted from inquiring about immigration status except when required to do so by law. This week, the council presented a revised version of the separation ordinance with tougher language intended to combat ICE, amid a targeted immigration operation ordered by President Trump focused on the Somali community. The new ordinance declares the city will...

The open stretches of public land along California’s southern frontier have long served as a quiet reminder of America’s vulnerability. But no more. On Wednesday, the Trump administration handed over jurisdiction of roughly 760 acres in San Diego and Imperial counties to the U.S. Navy, carving out a fresh militarized zone to clamp down on the relentless tide of illegal crossings. This corridor, snaking from the edge of the Otay Mountain Wilderness nearly to the Arizona line, traces through the Imperial Valley and past border towns like Tecate—a notorious hotspot where smugglers and cartels have run roughshod for years.It’s a...

𝐋𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐀𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐒𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐧 𝐁𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐈𝐬 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐍𝐚𝐯𝐲 The 760 acres of California land will be controlled by the military, allowing troops to make arrests. Read the article in the comments.

The Trump administration announced plans Wednesday to add another militarized zone to the southern border — this time in California — as part of a major shift that has thrust troops into border enforcement with Mexico like never before. The Department of Interior said it would transfer jurisdiction along most of California's border with Mexico to the Navy to reinforce "the historic role public lands have played in safeguarding national sovereignty." The Interior Department described the newest national defense area in California as a high-traffic zone for unlawful crossings by immigrants. But Border Patrol arrests along the southern U.S. border...

A border abandoned and laws ignored have turned public frustration into a sweeping backlash that now threatens even legal immigration. It is hard now even for Democrats to defend illegal immigration, given that the Biden administration allowed in more than 10 million entrants. Among them were an estimated 500,000 criminals. No one believes that was wise or should ever be repeated. Worse, the message went out that there would be few, if any, deportations and no real ICE kinetic activity beyond the border. The world’s poor, sick, both law-abiding and criminal, young and old, understood that anyone could now enter...

President Donald Trump fumed about a House Democrat — who he just pardoned — choosing to remain with the party rather than defect to the Republicans. In a blistering post to Truth Social early Sunday, the president bashed Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-TX) for announcing his intent to run for re-election as a Democrat, despite receiving a pardon from the president. Cuellar was facing charges for allegedly taking over $600,000 in foreign bribes. (The congressman’s wife, Imelda, was also charged in connection with the scheme.) “Can you imagine???” Trump wrote. “The Democrats, under the Crooked Joe Biden Administration, who always use...

FBI agents searched the Texas home and campaign headquarters of longtime United States Representative Henry Cuellar as part of a ‘court-authorized’ investigation after the Congressman made critical remarks about how Democrat Joe Biden and the Democrat administration are handling the unfolding crisis at the southern border between his state and Mexico.Cuellar is seen by associates as the most outspoken Democrat critics of the Biden administration’s border policy.Cuellar is considered a moderate and considered one of the most conservative representatives in the Democratic caucus, and he responded to media reporters that he would cooperate with the FBI.Cuellar’s social media shows that...

(CNSNews.com) - Amid growing concern about the illicit drug trade across the U.S.-Mexico border, the terrorist groups Hezbollah and Hamas have been linked to South American drug trafficking organizations–and the money Hezbollah and Hamas make from narco-trafficking is used to finance their organizations, according to the non-partisan Congressional Research Service (CRS). “International terrorist groups, including Hamas and Hezbollah, have also reportedly raised funding for their terrorist activities through linkages formed with DTOs in South America, particularly those operating in the tri-border area (TBA) of Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina,” stated CRS in an April 30 report. As evidence that Hezbollah and...

The shriek of whistles and a cacophony of cars honking have taken on new meaning on the streets of major U.S. cities in recent months — a warning to all those in earshot that immigration enforcement is nearby. The warning tactics from activists have become popular in cities recently targeted by Border Patrol immigration operations. Jill Garvey, a co-director of the pro-democracy group States at the Core, said during the first nationwide virtual “ICE WATCH” training session hosted with the help of community organizers from Chicago on Nov. 21. More than 500 people attended the online training session from dozens...

Bruce is gonna build a “wall.” Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman is planning to install high-tech surveillance along Long Island’s border with New York City when Mayor-Elect Zohran Mamdani takes office. Blakeman — a Republican eyeing a run for the gubernatorial nomination in 2026 — told Fox News in a recent interview that he’s directing police and county workers to line Nassau’s border with Queens with cameras, plate readers and facial recognition tech. “We are doing everything necessary to make sure that Nassau County is safe,” Blakeman told the outlet, calling Mamdani’s policies “pro-criminal” and “anti-American.” The county executive’s office...

A 19-year-old college student who was on her way to surprise her family for Thanksgiving break was detained at a Boston airport and later deported despite a federal judge's order blocking her removal, according to her attorney. Any Lucia Lopez Belloza, who entered the U.S. from Honduras when she was 8 years old, was about to board her flight to Texas last Friday to visit her parents and siblings when airport authorities told her to step aside, her attorney Todd Pomerleau told ABC News. Lopez Belloza was detained, informed that she had a removal order and then arrested, her attorney...

Former Democratic Senator Joe Manchin called out the Biden administration, arguing their mishandling of border security led to President Trump's return to the White House.

FRANKLIN PARK, Ill. (WLS) -- It's been about a week since Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino and his team left the Chicago area. But immigration operations still continue in the area as two people were detained by U.S. Department of Homeland Security federal agents in Franklin Park. A family in Franklin Park spent the afternoon fixing the front door which federal agents knocked down Thursday morning while executing an arrest warrant for a man in his 60s. The family says that man and his wife were both taken into DHS custody for allegedly living in the country illegally. The granddaughter...