New polling shows growing public concern over aggressive immigration enforcement tactics amid fatal shootings and expanded operations
A growing majority of Americans believe President
Donald Trump’s campaign to deport undocumented immigrants has gone too far, according to newly released polling data that captures public sentiment in the wake of heightened enforcement actions and controversial incidents.
The Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos survey, conducted in mid-February, found that fifty-eight percent of U.S. adults say the administration’s deportation efforts have exceeded acceptable bounds, while sixty-two percent oppose the aggressive tactics employed by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
These figures mark an increase in public disapproval of enforcement methods, particularly following the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens by ICE officers in Minneapolis, which have drawn national attention and widespread dismay.
The president’s overall approval rating on immigration has declined to forty percent, though he continues to receive relatively stronger marks — forty-seven percent — for his handling of the U.S.-Mexico border itself.
The poll also reveals a broad desire for more judicial oversight, with seventy-five percent of respondents, including many Republicans, saying federal agents should be required to obtain a judge’s warrant before entering private homes, a departure from current practice under administrative warrants.
Concerns about the human impact of the deportation campaign are particularly pronounced among minority communities: seventy-five percent of Asian Americans, seventy-six percent of Black Americans and fifty-four percent of Hispanic respondents say the deportation program is excessive.
Despite the backlash against enforcement tactics, about half of those surveyed still support deporting all undocumented immigrants, and half oppose abolishing ICE.
The survey comes as internal policy shifts and leadership changes follow public criticism, while the White House continues to defend its immigration approach as essential to national security and public safety.