Pictured: Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) speaks in support of the Lakin Riley Act on Jan. 9, 2025
U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley says President Donald Trump’s plans to deport illegal immigrants in the country got underway immediately following his inauguration on Monday, but it will take years for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to catch up to the millions of people in the country unlawfully. According to the Office of Homeland Security, the U.S. has an unauthorized immigrant population of nearly 11 million as of January 2022. Grassley says it is a huge task, and federal immigration officials are focusing first on the most disruptive individuals.
Grassley adds the millions of other illegal immigrants will have to be addressed at some point, but the priority now is deporting individuals who pose a clear threat to public safety. Pro-immigration advocates have argued mass deportations will hurt the nation’s economy, but Grassley finds that argument uncompelling.
One of the first bills expected to be signed into law by President Trump, a part of which has been championed by Iowa’s congressional delegation for nearly a decade, has already been approved by the House and Senate and is expected to facilitate deportations. Sarah’s Law, named after 21-year-old Sarah Root of Council Bluffs killed by an illegal immigrant drunk driver in 2016, was included in the Lakin Riley Act as an amendment. The driver posted bail, fled the country, and was never prosecuted. District 4 Representative (R-Hull) Randy Feenstra says, “Sarah’s Law ensures that any illegal immigrant who injures or kills an American citizen is swiftly detained and punished to the fullest extent of the law. In honor of Sarah, who was taken far too soon, we must restore law and order in our country to protect our families and communities.” Grassley made his comments during his weekly Capitol Hill Report with Iowa reports.
