ICE's Rampage: Sanctuary Madness Is Wrong, But Trump's Court-Defying Tyranny Is Worse
I’m of two minds on the recent ICE crackdown, especially the mess in Minnesota where federal agents are running roughshod over the courts. On one side, ICE is necessary to implement border control, especially as initially indicated to get migrants with criminal records deported and out of the U.S.—a core function that upholds the rule of law and protects communities from actual threats. But on the other, under the Trump Administration, the implementation of that policy has gone off the rails, with a majority of ICE enforcement going against either legals or illegals established in this country, tearing apart families and workers who’ve integrated into American society without posing risks.
Trump keeps saying ICE is going after criminals, yet the facts show otherwise: Cato Institute analysis of ICE data reveals that 73% of people booked into custody this fiscal year had no criminal conviction, with only 5% having violent convictions. Even DHS’s own spin admits lower numbers for serious offenders when the data is scrutinized. Most operations target people incorporated into mainstream American life—workers, families, taxpayers—who aren’t threats but get swept up in mass detentions and street arrests that have skyrocketed.
But here’s the incredible, stomach-turning outrage that punctuates the whole issue: ICE is now openly engaging in ongoing blatant criminal activity. Conservative federal judge Patrick Schiltz—a Scalia clerk, no less—documented 96 court-order violations across 74 cases since January 1, 2026 (and that’s almost certainly an undercount), warning that ICE has probably defied more orders this month alone than some agencies have in their entire existence. This isn’t law and order; it’s a shocking, contemptuous middle finger to the judiciary, due process, and the Constitution itself—the precise kind of rogue executive overreach I’ve hammered on these pages regarding Trump’s tariff power grabs without congressional buy-in.
To my friends who keep chanting “illegal is illegal,” fine—but if blind philosophical purity hands the keys back to Democrats and their socialist big-government nightmare, is it really worth it? With ICE flouting courts in at least 74 documented cases (and likely far more), this is bureaucratic tyranny on steroids—wasting billions, distorting labor markets, and gutting limited government. Congress has to step up right now, authorize targeted priorities, and slam the brakes on this rogue agency before we lose the fight for liberty altogether.