Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrested a record number of people on Tuesday, detaining more than 2,200 migrants following pressure from the White House to increase the number of arrests. A Guardian report on Saturday claimed that top White House aide Stephen Miller demanded officers make 3,000 arrests per day or be fired and urged them to “turn the creative knob up to 11” to enforce the quota by grabbing bystanders off the street and detaining people without a warrant. Tuesday’s record number appears to be a result of that, as ICE sent out mass texts to thousands of people enrolled in the “Alternatives to Detention” program, telling them to come to a pre-arranged meeting only to arrest them when they arrived. “If you enter, there’s a possibility that they’ll take you into custody,” Veronica Navarrete, an asylum-seeker from Ecuador, told NBC News. “And if you don’t enter, you’ve missed your appointment, and that’s automatic deportation. We have no way out.” An ICE spokesperson claimed those arrested had “executable final orders” issued by a judge, but multiple immigration lawyers claimed no such orders had been issued. “ICE arresting people already on Alternatives to Detention is bureaucratic theater,” said Jason Houser, former ICE chief of staff during the Biden administration. “These individuals are vetted, complying, and are in custody supervision and often have legal status.”
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