ICE directed to pause raids on some industries
Farm groups skeptical directive will protect immigrant workers
By: Ted Hesson and Marisa Taylor
Reuters
WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump;s administration has directed immigration officials to largely pause raids on farms, hotels, restaurants and meatpacking plants, according to an internal email reviewed by Reuters, a senior Trump official, and a person familiar with the matter.
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The order to scale back U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids came from Trump himself, the person familiar with the matter said, and appears to rein in a late-may [2025] demand.
..... Trump was not aware of the extent of the enforcement push and "once it hi him, he pulled it back, the person said.
..... the new directive, issued on June 12, [2025] still allows for investigation into serious crimes such as human trafficking,. The New York times first reported the guidance.
..... Trump took office in January [2025] pledging to depot millions of immigrants in the United States illegally. while Trump framed the effort around removing serious criminals, thousands of suspected immigration offenders with no criminal records have been swept up in recent months.
..... ICE's more aggressive tactics - including raids in Los Angeles - have sparked protests and push back from Democrats. Some Republican lawmakers have called on the administration to focus on criminal offenders.
..... Trump said on June 12 [2025] that he would issue an order soon to crackdown on the country's farm and hotel industries, which rely heavily on immigrant labor.
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"We will follow the president's direction and continue to work to get the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens off of America's streets," Department of Homeland Security Spokespeople Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement when asked about the new ICE guidance.
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The White House pointed to a Trump social media post on June 12 [2025] where he said farms and hospitality businesses were concerned the administration's far-reaching immigration enforcement was taking away "very good, long time workers" and promising changes. farm industry groups have long wanted Trump to spare their sector from mass deportations, which could upend a food supply chain dependent on immigrants.
..... The United Farm Workers union said on June 13 [2025] that it was skeptical the new directive would help workers without legal status. The group said it had calls from members about immigration arrest even after the new directive was issued.
.... "as long as Border patrol and ICE are allowed to sweep through farm workers communities making chaotic arrests ... they are still hunting down farm workers," the union said in a statement.