Apple News In Conversation How ICE entered its most aggressive era — and what comes next
12 snips
Jan 29, 2026 
Caitlin Dickerson, Pulitzer Prize winner and Atlantic staff writer known for deep reporting on immigration, discusses ICE's shift to aggressive interior enforcement. She covers rapid hiring, reduced oversight, expanded deportations, local police partnerships, and legal fights over warrantless entries. The conversation tracks how these changes play out on the ground and in courts.
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Rapid Hiring With Limited Vetting
- ICE claims to have hired roughly 12,000 officers with big bonuses and shortened training.
- Vetting and training were reduced to accelerate hiring, raising questions about who these agents are.
'Deport As Many As Possible' Directive
- The administration's directive is effectively to deport as many people as possible, not to focus on serious criminals.
- As a result, about 70% of those detained have no criminal record and arrests happen at workplaces and public sites.
Numbers Hide A Shift To Interior Removals
- Deportation totals touted by the administration mask a shift: many removals now come from the interior, not recent border crossers.
- Detention populations have more than doubled due to expanded funding and facilities.