Deportations, Fear, and Rejection - Trump’s Immigration Policy Drives Approval Ratings to New Lows

Washington – It was a calculated show of force by the Trump administration, but it threatens to become a political boomerang. For weeks now, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has been conducting aggressive mass raids in major American cities. Thousands of people have been arrested, deported, or sent to detention centers – often without warning, frequently without a court order. Now the latest polling data from Yahoo News and YouGov shows: the public is increasingly rejecting this approach. Trump’s approval ratings have fallen to a new low. Only 40 percent of respondents rate his performance positively, while 56 percent disapprove – a drop of six percentage points since March. Particularly notable: disapproval of his immigration policy has risen significantly among the population. As recently as the spring, immigration was considered one of the few areas where Trump could still count on solid support. Back then, 48 percent approved of his handling of migration. But in June, as ICE raids expanded, public opinion shifted: approval fell to 40 percent, disapproval rose to 58 percent. In numbers: an issue that gave Trump a four-point advantage in March has now flipped to an eight-point deficit – a clear shift in sentiment. The loss of trust is especially striking among young people, Latinos, and independents. Among Latino Americans, 78 percent reject the raids, only 19 percent support them. Even among independent voters, disapproval stands at 57 percent – a clear warning signal for Trump’s election strategy.

A key factor in this shift appears to be the perception that the government is deporting “the wrong people.” ICE was originally tasked with identifying dangerous criminals – but now, individuals with no criminal record, steady jobs, families, and community ties are being taken in broad daylight. Even U.S. citizens have been caught up in the sweeps. The backdrop is a new, unofficial goal set by the Trump administration: 3,000 arrests per day – a threefold increase from the previous average. According to the Wall Street Journal, Stephen Miller, Trump’s influential immigration adviser, even instructed ICE agents to specifically target day laborers at Home Depot or people outside 7-Eleven stores – even without concrete suspicion. The result is a climate of fear that has unsettled even conservative observers. The administration’s response to protests against these raids has further fueled criticism of Trump. While demonstrations – such as those in Los Angeles – are not without controversy, a majority of Americans view the deployment of nearly 5,000 armed troops to disperse protesters as a clear abuse of military power. Fifty percent disapprove of Trump’s decision, only 38 percent support it. Even the overall perception of ICE has deteriorated: 52 percent of respondents now view the agency negatively – and among Black Americans, young people, and Latinos, disapproval has soared to 82 percent. Many fear that instead of a targeted security policy, the United States is witnessing the authoritarian unraveling of a government that has lost all sense of proportion.

The survey makes it clear that a majority of Americans want a more nuanced immigration policy: 61 percent support deporting only those migrants who have committed crimes and providing a legal path to citizenship for everyone else. Just a quarter of the population supports Trump and Miller’s plan for mass deportations regardless of individual circumstances. Donald Trump’s former campaign promise to make the country safer through consistent deportations is increasingly looking like a political dead end – driven by fear, but not by public support. The president has succeeded in making immigration a central issue again – but not to his advantage.