Trump confirms deportation strategy will include national emergency and military

WASHINGTON —  President-elect Donald Trump’s plan to execute mass deportations of immigrants in the U.S. illegally will involve the military and a national emergency declaration, he confirmed Monday.

In a Nov. 8 post on Trump’s social media platform Truth Social, Tom Fitton, who leads the conservative legal group Judicial Watch, wrote: “GOOD NEWS: Reports are the incoming @RealDonaldTrump administration prepared to declare a national emergency and will use military assets to reverse the Biden invasion through a mass deportation program.”

Trump responded early Monday: “TRUE!!!”

A spokesperson for the Trump transition team didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

During his first term, Trump bypassed Congress to divert Pentagon funds to expand the border wall by declaring a national emergency. President Biden terminated the emergency order just after he took office in 2021.

Mass deportations were one of Trump’s top campaign promises — he said he would go after at least 15 million people who are in the U.S. illegally, though it’s not known whether the total number of undocumented immigrants is that high. On the campaign trail, Trump said his strategy would rely on military troops, friendly state and local law enforcement and wartime powers.

Trump chose Tom Homan, previously the acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, to oversee deportations as his “border czar.” Homan promised to resume workplace immigration raids and prioritize immigrants who pose threats to public safety and national security for deportation.