At yesterday’s U.S. Senate hearing on the nomination of Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) to become the next Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Senator Mullin tried to make the case that the harms of the Trump/Miller mass deportation crusade are in the past and will be remedied by a change in leadership at DHS and revamped messaging.
As the New York Times highlighted after the hearing, “Mullin’s Softer Tone at Hearing Underscores G.O.P. Shift on Immigration,” “Mr. Mullin’s softer tone was also in line with a broader shift underway among Republicans in how they talk about immigration enforcement. Some have acknowledged that Mr. Trump’s aggressive language and tactics on immigration, which they have backed almost without qualification, have cost their party support with voters, imperiling their already dim prospects for keeping control of Congress in November’s midterm elections.”
Yet as a host of media clips – below – capture, the real harms and consequences of mass deportation continue throughout the country and can’t be resolved by revamped messaging or leadership at DHS.
According to Joanna Kuebler, Chief of Programs at America’s Voice: “Please, let’s not be fooled again. A ‘soft’ tone does not replace the hard reality of mass deportation. The latest ‘messaging’ from the wannabe DHS leader and his Republican allies is nothing more than a cover up of the relentless Trump/Miller vision to purge America of immigrants. The cruelty, chaos and violence resulting from mass deportation continues every day and requires actually reining in the violent mass deportation agenda and realigning colossally misplaced priorities that the majority of Americans soundly reject – not playing musical chairs with DHS leadership or revamping messaging to whitewash the reality in communities across America.”
Below are several fresh reminders of the harms and consequences of mass deportation playing out across the country
- NBC News, ‘Americans at heart’: ICE detains DACA recipient on way to visit premature baby in NICU, notes, “Chavez Velasco, 35, was taken into custody and transported to a detention center in Laredo, leaving behind a U.S.-citizen wife and three U.S.-citizen children, the youngest of whom was in an isolation chamber in the neonatal intensive care unit.”
- Austin Kocher’s Substack, “As Predicted, ICE Reports Another Detention Death While Congress Does Nothing: 2nd This Week, 13th This Year, 42nd Under Trump” notes, “Royer Perez-Jimenez, a 19-year-old Mexican national, was pronounced dead at 2:51 a.m. on March 16, 2026 at the Glades County Detention Center in Moore Haven, Florida. He was able to commit suicide in a detention facility well known for its systemic failures, which the Biden administration shut down and the Trump administration recklessly reopened.”
- Tampa Bay Times, “As Dreamers are getting deported, some wonder what comes next“ notes, “Last month, a Mexican mother who had lived in the United States for 27 years was detained in Sacramento, California, during a green card interview and deported 24 hours later to Mexico. She was a program recipient. Now, she’s suing the federal government, and lawmakers are demanding her return.”
- USA TODAY op-ed, “US promised safety. A nearly blind refugee died cold and alone” notes, “Shah Alam, an almost blind, limited English-proficient refugee legally in the United States, was detained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and then dropped off in the middle of the night outside a closed local cafe in February. His next of kin were not notified of his release, and he was later found dead.”
- CBS News, “Florida sheriffs break with Gov. DeSantis, back path to legal status for some immigrants amid ICE crackdown,” notes, “A group of Florida sheriffs on a state immigration enforcement board sharply criticized the federal government’s mass deportation efforts Monday, a stark departure from hardline policies in Florida, where Gov. Ron DeSantis has spearheaded collaboration with federal officials to remove all undocumented immigrants.”
