President Donald Trump reportedly reversed his administration’s decision to suspend most Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) traffic stops after facing criticism from several prominent conservative voices, according to a report published Wednesday by The Atlantic.
The report, written by Jonathan Lemire and Nick Miroff, said Trump abandoned the directive after a wave of backlash from supporters that included conservative commentator Tomi Lahren, former Border Patrol Chief Greg Bovino and War Room host Steve Bannon.
According to White House officials cited by The Atlantic, criticism aired on cable news Wednesday morning played a role in influencing the president’s decision. The report said Trump ultimately concluded that suspending traffic stops would project weakness.
According to the magazine, Trump believed the policy would “make them all look weak.”
The reported reversal came just over a day after Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin directed ICE officers to suspend most vehicle stops following two fatal shootings involving immigration agents within a one-week span.
One of those incidents involved the death of 26-year-old Colombian delivery driver Joan Sebastian Guerrero in Maine. The other involved Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Mexican construction contractor who had lived in the United States for 35 years, in Texas.
The Atlantic reported that neither Guerrero nor Salgado Araujo had a criminal record and that neither man was the intended target of the law enforcement actions that ultimately led to their deaths.
On Wednesday morning, Trump publicly rejected the policy in a post on Truth Social, making clear that he opposed limiting one of ICE’s enforcement tactics.
“We CANNOT give up one of I.C.E.’s most important and effective Crime Fighting tools, THE TRAFFIC STOP!” Trump wrote. “Once we do, we are playing right into the criminal’s hands.”
The president’s statement appeared to signal a reversal from the earlier directive and underscored his support for continuing the use of traffic stops as part of immigration enforcement operations.
According to The Atlantic, the administration’s change in course represented a setback for Mullin. The outlet reported that Department of Homeland Security and ICE officials questioned whether such a directive would have been issued without prior approval from the White House.
However, a senior administration official disputed that characterization, telling the magazine that Trump had not approved the pause before it was announced.
Following Trump’s Truth Social post, Mullin released a statement through the Department of Homeland Security emphasizing that he and the president shared the same goals regarding immigration enforcement.
“President Trump and I are on the same page,” Mullin said in the statement provided to The Atlantic.
Mullin added that he wanted ICE officers to retain every available option to protect themselves while carrying out deportation operations.
“We want our ICE officers to have all options available to keep them safe while executing our mission of deporting as many illegal alien criminals from our country as possible,” Mullin said.
While Mullin’s statement expressed alignment with the president’s position, it did not explicitly instruct ICE officers to resume conducting traffic stops.
The reported policy reversal came amid heightened scrutiny of ICE operations following the two fatal shootings and illustrates the internal debate over enforcement tactics as the administration continues pursuing its immigration agenda. According to The Atlantic, criticism from influential conservative figures and public reaction helped shape the administration’s decision to abandon the temporary pause and reaffirm support for one of ICE’s longstanding enforcement tools.
[READ MORE: Hegseth Unveils Annual Testosterone Screening Program for Service Members 30 and Older]
