NEW YORK, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) -- With Donald Trump returning to the White House, there is intense interest in how the Republican president will carry out his immigration agenda, including a campaign pledge of mass deportations, reported The Associated Press (AP) on Monday.
"His priorities could run into the realities faced by agents focused on enforcement and removals," noted the report, adding "the number of people already on its lists to target eclipses the number of officers available to do the work."
The Joe Biden administration had narrowed deportation priorities to public safety threats and recent border crossers. Trump's incoming "border czar," Tom Homan, said officials in the new administration also will prioritize those who pose a risk, such as criminals, before moving on to immigrants whom courts have ordered removed from the United States.
About 1.4 million people have final orders of removal, while about 660,000 under immigration supervision either have been convicted of crimes or are facing charges, according to the report. However, only 6,000 officers within the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement are tasked with monitoring noncitizens in the country and then finding and removing those not eligible to stay. ■