USCIS, which administers immigration system, adds law enforcement agents to its workforce
Entrance to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) offices at 26 Federal Plaza in Manhattan. (Erik McGregor/LightRocket via Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — The federal agency responsible for administering the nation’s immigration and naturalization system will now have enforcement agents for the first time.
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is adding law enforcement agents to its workforce, according to a press release issued Thursday by the agency.
The agents will be tasked with “making arrests, carrying firearms, executing search and arrest warrants, and other powers standard for federal law enforcement,” according to the release.
Traditionally, the agency has not been a law enforcement agency.
A new rule published on the federal register grants the authority under a little-known department at USCIS: the fraud detection agency.
The rule technically expands their authority to give them law enforcement powers.
“By upholding the integrity of our immigration system, we enforce the laws of this nation. As Secretary Noem delegated lawful authorities to expand the agency’s law enforcement capabilities, this rule allows us to fulfill our critical mission,” USCIS Director Joseph Edlow said in the announcement, referring to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
“This historic moment will better address immigration crimes, hold those that perpetrate immigration fraud accountable, and act as a force multiplier for DHS and our federal law enforcement partners, including the Joint Terrorism Task Force,” Edlow said.
(LOUSIVILLE, Ky.) — Authorities are responding to a reported plane crash near the Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport in Kentucky, police said Tuesday.
There are reported injuries, according to the Louisville Metro Police Department, which did not specify how many.
A shelter-in-place has been issued within five miles of the airport, police said.
“This is an active scene with fire and debris. Stay away,” the Louisville Metro Police Department said on social media.
A large plume of smoke could be seen near the airport, which is closed, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
The airport confirmed there was an “aircraft incident” and that the airfield is closed.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
An officer wearing an ICE badge in Broadview, Ill., Sept. 26, 2025. Jacek Boczarski/Anadolu via Getty Images “
(WASHINGTON) — There is credible intelligence that members of Mexican drug cartels have offered a “tiered” bounty system for hits against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Two weeks ago, the Justice Department charged a member of the Chicago-based Latin Kings with putting a bounty on Greg Bovino, the CBP Commander overseeing the surge operations in Los Angeles, Chicago and Portland.
Drug cartels have “disseminated a structured bounty program to incentivize violence against federal personnel,” according to a press release from DHS.
The federal agency alleges cartels are offering $2,000 for intelligence gathering and doxing of agents, $5,000–$10,000 for kidnapping or non-lethal assaults on standard ICE/CBP officers and up to $50,000 for the assassination of high-ranking officials.
Gangs like the Latin Kings have also deployed “spotters” armed with firearms and radio communications to provide the real-time movements of CBP and ICE agents, according to DHS.
“These criminal networks are not just resisting the rule of law, they are waging an organized campaign of terror against the brave men and women who protect our borders and communities,” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said in a press release.
“Our agents are facing ambushes, drone surveillance, and death threats, all because they dare to enforce the laws passed by Congress,” Noem added. “We will not back down from these threats, and every criminal, terrorist, and illegal alien will face American justice.”
The DHS report comes amid a legal battle surrounding the deployment of National Guard troops to Chicago, in part, as protection for immigration enforcement officers and facilities.
Last week, District Judge April Perry temporarily blocked the deployment of troops from any U.S. state into Illinois, a ruling that will be in effect for 14 days.
In the decision, Perry determined that there is “no credible evidence that there is a danger of rebellion in Illinois” and no evidence that the president is unable with the regular forces to execute the laws of the U.S.
She said that the deployment of the national guard to Illinois “is likely to lead to civil unrest” requiring a response from local and state law enforcement.
Referencing what she called the “provocative nature of ICE enforcement activity” in Illinois, she said, “I find allowing the national guard to deploy will only add fuel to the fire that they started.”
The DOJ appealed the ruling, but it was rejected by a federal appeals court.
Cattle are shown at the Cattlemen’s Columbus Livestock Auction in Columbus Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025. (Melissa Phillip/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) has pushed back against President Trump’s plan to increase beef imports from Argentina, calling it “misguided.”
The group, which describes itself as “the national trade association representing U.S. cattle producers,” said in a statement that “efforts to manipulate markets only risk damaging the livelihoods of American cattlemen and women, while doing little to impact the price consumers are paying,” calling it “a misguided effort to lower the price of beef in grocery stores.”
“The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and its members cannot stand behind the President while he undercuts the future of family farmers and ranchers by importing Argentinian beef in an attempt to influence prices,” said NCBA CEO Colin Woodall in the statement, in part.
“If President Trump is truly an ally of America’s cattle producers, we call on him to abandon this effort to manipulate markets,” he added.
Trump told reporters on Air Force One earlier this week that buying beef from Argentina “will bring our beef prices down” while also helping Argentina economically. On Wednesday, the president posted on his Truth Social online platform that American cattle ranchers “have to get their prices down,” and that they “don’t understand that the only reason they are doing so well, for the first time in decades, is because I put Tariffs on cattle coming into the United States, including a 50% Tariff on Brazil.”
The NCBA said in their statement that the U.S. already has a deep beef trade imbalance with Argentina.
“During the past five years, Argentina has shipped beef valued at more than $800 million to the U.S., while purchasing only $7 million of U.S. beef,” the statement said, adding “It is imperative that President Trump and Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins let the cattle markets work.”
Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., told ABC News Wednesday that he was concerned about the impacts of increasing foreign beef imports.
“We’ve got all the folks that are ranchers in my state that are handling beef. They would tell you firsthand American beef is the best beef in the world. That’s why we work hard to be able to export it,” he said.
“The president worked very hard to be able to open up Australia and Japan and other places to increase American beef going in there because the world wants American beef. So I’m a big proponent of raising more American beef to solve America’s issues,” Lankford further said.
Eight House Republicans also sent a letter to the White House Tuesday, expressing their concerns about President Trump’s plans to increase beef imports from Argentina.
“While we recognize the importance of strong trade relationships and diverse markets, our producers are seeking clarity on how this decision will be made, what safety and inspection standards will apply, and how this policy aligns with your administration’s commitment to strengthening American agriculture,” the letter reads, in part. It was signed by representatives from Colorado, Kansas, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Texas.
Last week, the president announced a $20 billion bailout for Argentina’s foundering economy, prompting questions as to why the U.S. would commit billions to boost the economy of a foreign country when thousands of American farmers are suffering.
