Trump Admin Still Lags Behind Biden in Immigrant Removals But Has Recorded Many More Arrests: Report

A new report by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) has found that the Trump administration has deported fewer immigrants on average per day than the Biden administration but has outpaced its predecessor in arrests. The findings are based on official Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) data.

According to TRAC, daily immigrant removals from January 26, six days into the Trump administration, through February 8 averaged 693, which is 6.5% lower than the daily average of 742 during Biden's last full fiscal year in office (FY 2024). When removals through March 8 were included, the daily average under Trump further declined to 661—nearly 11% below Biden's numbers.

"Despite deploying staff from other agencies to assist in enforcement activities and ordering active-duty military to facilitate removals at the border, daily removals have still failed to reach even the levels achieved by the previous administration," TRAC reported. The data also indicated that removals peaked early in the administration but declined over time, reaching just 600 daily in mid-February.

In contrast, the Trump administration has recorded a higher number of immigration-related arrests. During FY 2024, an average of 759 individuals per day were booked into ICE detention facilities under Biden. However, from January 26 to 31, ICE bookings under Trump surged to a daily average of 1,126 before falling back to 724 in early February.

Arrests peaked again at 909 per day from February 23 to 28 but dropped to 718 per day in early March—5.4% below Biden's FY 2024 daily average. Over the full period from January 26 through March 8, Trump's cumulative average of 812 daily arrests was 7% higher than Biden's record.

The TRAC report also noted inconsistencies in the Trump administration's approach, stating that arrest levels have fluctuated significantly rather than maintaining a steady increase. "While results suggest that the Trump administration is not able to sustain these higher arrest levels week after week, with additional personnel assisting ICE, it has managed to bring its cumulative average above Biden's," the report found.

TRAC also raised concerns about transparency, stating that "the Trump administration continues to conceal most concrete details about its immigration enforcement activities." The report highlighted the lack of detailed public information regarding the locations of arrests, the demographics of those detained, and the specific categories of individuals being removed.

While some enforcement actions have been publicized, TRAC emphasized that "the need for public persistence seeking to document ICE's actual enforcement efforts backed up with reliable numbers on arrests and removals remains of vital importance."