When law enforcement becomes a political weapon

ICE’s collapsing public support and growing fear are the predictable result of Trump’s immigration agenda.

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ICE agents are afraid of the public. That was inevitable.

This story is so obvious in hindsight that it’s almost surprising it took this long to surface.

ICE agents are now openly admitting that they are afraid of the public, afraid to drive marked vehicles, afraid to conduct routine operations, and ultimately afraid to be seen at all.

This is what happens when a government turns law enforcement into a political weapon and then refuses to grapple with the consequences.

No matter how much Donald Trump insists that Americans “love” what ICE is doing, the reality is that large portions of the country now see ICE agents not as protectors of public safety, but as a menacing force. That perception did not emerge spontaneously. It has been building steadily as the administration’s immigration enforcement escalated in both brutality and visibility.

The breaking point

The most recent flashpoint came in Minneapolis, when ICE agent Jonathan Ross shot and killed Renee Good, a 37-year-old unarmed mother of three, during an operation. She was not a criminal. She was not armed. She was described by her family as compassionate and devoted.

She was shot three times inside her vehicle.

The federal government initially claimed that Good was attempting to run over ICE officers. That justification has been widely challenged, including by video footage released to the public. Some now argue that a new angle shows contact between the vehicle and the agent.

What the footage appears to show is Ross stepping in front of the vehicle, leaning forward to make contact, and then using that contact as justification for lethal force. Whether that narrative holds up or not, the public reaction was swift and furious.

And that reaction matters.

A collapse in public support

Polling now shows a historic collapse in support for ICE. Approval has gone from net positive to deeply negative during Trump’s presidency. The majority of Americans now disapprove of ICE and disapprove of its use of force.

Agents are encountering open hostility. Drivers making gun gestures as they pass ICE patrols. People are yelling and heckling. Protesters banging pots and honking horns outside hotels where ICE agents are staying.

At the same time, enforcement operations are ramping up.

That creates a dangerous contradiction: more aggressive action paired with officers who are increasingly afraid to be seen carrying it out.

Who is wearing the badge now

A number of viewers wrote to me with a blunt point: if you are terrified of your job, most people would quit.

That’s where the psychology of today’s ICE force becomes important. We are not talking about battle-tested professionals with deep civic purpose and extensive training. A significant number of current ICE agents are recent recruits.

These are people drawn not by a desire to make the world safer, but by sign-on bonuses, fast-tracked hiring, and the promise of authority. In too many cases, the appeal was the ability to punch down. To feel powerful. To escape insecurity through a badge, a gun, and a mask.

That is not real purpose.

And when your identity is built on power rather than service, it collapses the moment the public starts treating you as the threat. Which, increasingly, they are.

Why the protesters aren’t afraid

The contrast with the protesters is telling.

People filling the streets are not there for a paycheck or a power trip. They are there because they believe something larger is at stake. They believe there is government overreach. They believe state violence is being normalized. They believe lives are being lost unnecessarily.

They are motivated by democracy, by accountability, and by a sense that stopping this matters.

That kind of motivation is fundamentally different from the motivation of recent ICE recruits who panic when confronted with resistance or even basic public disdain. These officers are not afraid because they are under threat from violent gangs. They are afraid because ordinary Americans are increasingly saying: unaccountable use of force that kills civilians does not get silence in return.

No celebration of violence

Let me be absolutely clear. I am against violence, period. That includes violence committed by ICE and violence committed against ICE officers.

This is not about cheering fear or harm.

It is about cause and effect.

Trump’s ideology and policies created this environment. Agents were recruited under questionable circumstances, given shortened and inadequate training, and then sent out to carry out politically charged enforcement in communities that increasingly reject what they represent.

Now those agents are realizing that this is not a safe or stable situation for them either.

That realization should come with accountability. A moment of reflection and recognition that they helped create this environment.

Instead, what we’re seeing is fear without introspection.

Where this leaves us

ICE is deeply unpopular. Its agents are increasingly afraid. Public trust has collapsed. And yet the operations trudge on.

At some point, the conclusion becomes unavoidable. This entire operation, at least as it currently exists, needs to be fundamentally reconsidered.

That’s where I land.

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