The Trump administration reversed course Monday on a brief exemption for farms, hotel, and restaurants from immigration raids, telling agents to resume enforcement operations at these worksites only four days after pausing them due to industry concerns.
Department of Homeland Security officials told Immigration and Customs Enforcement leadership that agents must continue conducting raids at agricultural businesses, hotels, and restaurants, according to two people familiar with the call who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal operations, first reported by the Washington Post.
The reversal came after President Donald Trump last Thursday acknowledged on social media that his “very aggressive” immigration policies were hurting farmers and hotel operators by removing longtime workers who were “almost impossible to replace.”
“There will be no safe spaces for industries who harbor violent criminals or purposely try to undermine ICE’s efforts,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said Monday. “Worksite enforcement remains a cornerstone of our efforts to safeguard public safety, national security and economic stability.”
The policy flip highlights tensions within the administration between aggressive deportation goals and economic realities facing industries that rely heavily on immigrant labor.
White House officials have demanded that ICE arrest at least 3,000 people daily to fulfill Trump’s promise of the largest domestic deportation operation in US history. Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, the main architect of Trump’s immigration policies, pushed back against industry-specific exemptions, according to two people with knowledge of his position.
The brief pause began Thursday when senior ICE official Tatum King sent an email directing agents: “Effective today, please hold on all work site enforcement investigations/operations on agriculture (including aquaculture and meat packing plants), restaurants and operating hotels.”
That directive came hours after Trump posted on Truth Social that farmers and hospitality businesses complained the crackdown was taking away “very good, long time workers.” Trump blamed former President Joe Biden for allowing “criminals” to apply for farmworker jobs and promised “changes are coming.”
But Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins had advocated for protecting the farming industry, while Miller pushed back against the exemptions, the people said.
ICE’s daily arrests have exceeded 1,300 in June, doubling the rate from the administration’s first 100 days, according to internal government data obtained by CBS News. The agency is currently holding more than 56,000 people in detention facilities, a record high.
Recent raids have disrupted operations across multiple industries. ICE arrested more than 70 people at a food packaging company in Omaha, Neb., leaving the business operating at 30% capacity. In California’s Ventura County, known for strawberries, lemons, and avocados, dozens of farmworkers were arrested as uniformed agents swept through fields.
Read: Meatpacking Plant Left Scrambling After Raid Removes Longtime Immigrant Workers
Some 42% of crop farmworkers lack legal status, according to the Agriculture Department.
The enforcement operations have sparked protests, particularly in Los Angeles, where Trump deployed National Guard troops and Marines to deal with demonstrations over federal raids.
Read: Tensions Escalate In The Brewing Civil War Between Trump and Newsom
Farm bureaus and industry groups had lobbied heavily for exemptions, warning that raids during the summer growing season threatened food production. Rebecca Shi, chief executive of the American Business Immigration Coalition, said the pause had signaled the president was “open to a solution.”
Immigration experts say ICE needs large-scale workplace raids to meet the administration’s ambitious arrest quotas. Past raids at meatpacking plants have led to hundreds of arrests at once, compared to smaller numbers from community-based enforcement.
The United Farm Workers union remained skeptical even during the brief exemption, saying members continued reporting arrests. “As long as Border Patrol and ICE are allowed to sweep through farm worker communities making chaotic arrests…they are still hunting down farm workers,” the union said Friday.
Trump took office in January promising to deport millions of immigrants living in the US illegally. While he initially focused messaging on removing serious criminals, thousands of people with no criminal records have been swept up in recent operations.
Asked about future ICE operations, a White House official said Trump “remains committed to enforcing federal immigration law — anyone present in the United States illegally is at risk of deportation.”
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