The border and deportations
Moving
Detention and funding laws passed. Birthright citizenship did not survive the Supreme Court.
Post this to X, with the sourceThe promise
Shut down catch-and-release. Detain and deport at a scale modern Washington had refused. Build barriers. Make criminal noncitizens un-releasable.
What happened
- Laken Riley Act, signed January 29, 2025.
- Secure America Act, Public Law 119-98, June 10, 2026.
- DHS-reported removals, arrests, and self-departures.
The Laken Riley Act, S. 5, was signed on January 29, 2025. It requires federal detention of certain noncitizens accused of specific crimes, including theft and assaulting a police officer.
The Secure America Act, S. 2, became Public Law 119-98 on June 10, 2026. It is a reconciliation spending bill: Customs and Border Protection staffing, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement money for arrests, including in jurisdictions that do not cooperate. Reconciliation needs a majority, not 60 votes. It funds enforcement. It does not rewrite the asylum statute or the Constitution.
The HALT Fentanyl Act is a separate statute. See that entry.
Removal numbers in the press are the government’s numbers. Newsweek, quoting the Department of Homeland Security on October 13, 2026, reported more than 3 million departures in the first year back, including an estimated 2.2 million self-deportations, nearly 1.1 million deportations, and more than 1.1 million arrests. The White House on September 9, 2026 said no one had been released into the country for 15 straight months, that 2025 showed negative net migration, and that asylum grants had fallen to 7 percent. Those are administration figures, not a Census audit. Treat them as the government’s account.
What is holding it up
The part that needed a court, lost. Ending birthright citizenship by executive order was struck down. See that entry. A full rewrite of asylum law is ordinary legislation. Ordinary legislation can be filibustered, and Republicans hold 53 Senate seats, not 60. Money could move on reconciliation. The constitutional theory could not.
Still ahead
- Birthright citizenship executive orders lost in court.
- No 60-vote rewrite of asylum or citizenship statutes.
Dates
Jan 29, 2025 · Law
Laken Riley Act signed
S. 5. Mandatory detention for certain criminal accusations against noncitizens.
June 30, 2026 · Court
Supreme Court rejects the citizenship order
Trump v. Barbara. Children born here to parents here illegally or temporarily are citizens at birth.
June 10, 2026 · Law
Secure America Act becomes law
Public Law 119-98. Reconciliation funding for border personnel and immigration arrests.
Oct 13, 2026 · Agency
DHS removal figures
Newsweek reports the department’s tally: about 1.1 million deportations and a larger number of self-departures.
Two real statutes are on the books, and the administration is running a large removal and self-deportation campaign by its own count. The idea that a president can cancel citizenship for babies born here did not become law.
Updated October 13, 2026.
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