Trump Overrules DHS, Orders ICE to Resume Traffic Stops
President Donald Trump has overruled his own Department of Homeland Security and ordered Immigration and Customs Enforcement to resume vehicle traffic stops, just one day after DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin announced an indefinite pause following two fatal shootings by ICE agents within a single week.
In a post on Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump declared traffic stops “one of ICE’s most important and effective Crime Fighting tools” and vowed the pause “won’t happen on my watch,” according to Fox News.
Background: A Week of Deadly Encounters
The DHS pause, announced on July 14, came after three people died during encounters with immigration officers in the span of a week. On July 7, ICE agents fatally shot Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Mexican national who had lived in the United States for 35 years with no criminal record, while he was driving his construction crew to a job site in Houston. On July 13, Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, a 25-year-old Colombian national, was fatally shot by ICE in Biddeford, Maine, while commuting between two jobs. A third man died in Florida after being hit by a tractor-trailer while fleeing federal officers.
In both the Houston and Maine shootings, the ICE agents involved were not wearing body cameras, raising questions about accountability. The Associated Press reported that the pause instructed agents to cease most vehicle stops except for targets considered “the most egregious” with serious or violent criminal histories.
Trump’s Intervention
Trump’s social media post on Wednesday morning reversed the policy in dramatic fashion. “We CANNOT give up one of ICE’s most important and effective Crime fighting tools, THE TRAFFIC STOP! Once we do, we are playing right into the criminal’s hands,” he wrote. “The Radical Left Dumocrats would like to see this done, but it won’t happen on my watch.”
Addressing federal agents directly, Trump added: “ICE, be judicious, fair and smart, and go back and do your very important job.” The White House confirmed to Fox News that the president had overturned the pause.
DHS Response
DHS Secretary Mullin, who had ordered the initial pause, issued a statement backing Trump’s reversal. “Our #1 goal is to keep our officers safe and get criminals OFF our streets,” Mullin said, as reported by The Guardian. “If you are here illegally, LEAVE NOW.”
Border Czar Tom Homan described the pause as temporary pending review and retraining, noting that the pause had carved out exceptions for the most serious criminal targets.
Rising Death Toll
Since the start of Trump’s mass deportation campaign, at least 10 people have been killed during immigration operations. Five of the 11 people shot dead by federal immigration officers since Trump’s second term began were in their vehicles at the time. The DHS’s standard justification — that occupants had “weaponized” their vehicles against agents — has repeatedly been undercut by witness accounts and video evidence.
In Houston, witnesses told attorneys that no officer was ever in the vehicle’s path and that shots came from the sides. In Maine, Durán’s wife and young daughter reportedly witnessed the aftermath of the shooting.
Political Fallout
The episode has created unusual political alignments. Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine urged DHS “to cease all non-urgent vehicle stops,” while Maine’s Democratic Governor Janet Mills called for ICE to be “fundamentally reformed, and if not, then it is time to abolish it.” Biddeford Mayor Liam LaFountain criticized the lack of body cameras, noting that local police have had them for nearly a decade while ICE has not equipped its agents.
Outgoing Colombian President Gustavo Petro called the Maine shooting a targeted killing “at the hands of the U.S. government,” straining bilateral relations.
Analysis: Internal Administration Tensions
The one-day pause and its swift reversal reveal significant internal tension within the Trump administration over immigration enforcement tactics. Mullin, a former Oklahoma congressman, attempted a tactical pause to address escalating public outrage, but Trump’s instinct was to double down on enforcement. The episode signals that no tactical retreat will be tolerated as the administration pursues its mass deportation campaign ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
What’s Next
Questions remain about whether DHS Secretary Mullin will face consequences for implementing the pause without presidential approval, whether body camera requirements will be implemented for ICE agents, and whether Congress will take legislative action to restrict or reform ICE traffic stop authority. Investigations into both shootings are ongoing.