DHS Narrows Immigration Enforcement After Polling Drop, Shifts to Targeted Arrests and Traffic Stops

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is recalibrating its immigration-enforcement approach, stepping back from high-profile mass raids and moving toward narrower, intelligence-driven operations and increased traffic-stop enforcement.

What’s Changing

Sources cited by NewsNation reporter Ali Bradley say U.S. Border Patrol teams under Commander Gregory Bovino will concentrate on specific targets — notably noncitizens living in the U.S. illegally who have been convicted of serious crimes — rather than carrying out sweeping, widely publicized raids at public sites such as Home Depot. Bradley said it is unlikely the public will see Border Patrol "grabbing people off the streets," signaling a shift away from the most visible tactics used this year.

Enforcement Tactics

Alongside targeted arrests, agents will emphasize traffic-stop enforcement as a way to locate and detain priority apprehension targets. Officials say this narrower focus is intended to be more precise and less disruptive to the broader public.

Political Context And Polling

Officials frame the adjustment against a backdrop of declining public support for President Trump’s immigration agenda, a core part of his 2024 campaign emphasis and a likely priority in a second term. A recent Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) survey found approval of Mr. Trump’s handling of immigration fell from 42% to 33% since March. Earlier polls — including YouGov and a joint KFF/New York Times survey — also showed widespread public and immigrant concern about aggressive Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations and a sense among many immigrants that they feel less safe.

Operations, Reactions And Ongoing Cases

Border Patrol operations this year have been visible in multiple cities, including Los Angeles, Chicago and Charlotte, North Carolina. Several raids prompted protests and, in some instances, clashes with agents; critics have argued some operations went too far. Despite the tactical shift, Bradley reports that a newly launched operation in New Orleans — dubbed "Catahoula Crunch" — will continue. DHS officials say the New Orleans operation has resulted in more than 250 arrests so far and has an operational goal of 5,000 arrests.

Bottom line: DHS appears to be moving toward more targeted, intelligence-driven enforcement and greater use of traffic stops, while high-profile, large-scale public raids become less prominent amid political and public scrutiny.