President Donald Trump's administration advances its immigration agenda with an unexpected development involving Internal Revenue Service personnel.
According to Daily Wire, the Department of Homeland Security has requested Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to authorize IRS criminal investigators to assist in border control and deportation operations.
The proposal, outlined in a February 7 memo from DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, seeks to utilize IRS law enforcement personnel's expertise in investigating financial crimes to target human trafficking networks and businesses employing unauthorized immigrants.
These agents, who are authorized to carry firearms and make arrests, currently focus on various financial crimes, including tax return preparer fraud and identity theft schemes.
The redeployment of IRS criminal investigators marks a significant change in their traditional role within the federal law enforcement system. These agents possess specialized skills in tracking financial transactions and conducting complex investigations. Their expertise could prove valuable in dismantling the financial infrastructure supporting illegal immigration operations.
Trump previously hinted at this strategic move during a campaign event at the Circa Resort & Casino in Las Vegas. At that time, many interpreted his remarks as political rhetoric rather than a serious policy proposal. Trump told his supporters:
They hired, or tried to hire, 88,000 workers to go after you and we're in the process of developing a plan to either terminate all of them, or maybe we'll move them to the border. I think we're going to move them to the border where they are allowed to carry guns. You know, they're so strong on guns. But these people are allowed to carry guns. So we will probably move them to the border.
The administration's decision to redeploy IRS personnel builds upon Biden's 2021 initiative to expand the IRS workforce by approximately 87,000 full-time employees by 2031.
The deployment of IRS agents represents just one component of Trump's broader immigration enforcement strategy. Within the first 18 days of his second term, Immigration and Customs Enforcement has already conducted 11,000 arrests of unauthorized immigrants.
The administration has implemented several significant policy changes to strengthen immigration enforcement. These include dismantling the CBP One app introduced during the Biden administration and removing restrictions on ICE agents' authority to locate and detain unauthorized immigrants.
DHS officials believe the addition of IRS criminal investigators will enhance their ability to investigate and prosecute immigration-related financial crimes. The agents' experience in complex financial investigations could help authorities identify and disrupt the monetary flows supporting illegal immigration operations.
The move demonstrates a creative approach to utilizing existing federal resources for immigration enforcement. By leveraging IRS criminal investigators' specialized skills, the administration aims to address both the financial and operational aspects of illegal immigration.
The redeployment raises questions about the future of tax enforcement and the allocation of federal law enforcement resources. With IRS criminal investigators focusing on immigration-related cases, it remains unclear how their traditional responsibilities will be managed.
The Trump administration's decision to deploy IRS criminal investigators to support immigration enforcement operations marks a significant shift in federal law enforcement strategy. The Department of Homeland Security's request to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent seeks to utilize these armed agents' expertise in investigating financial crimes to target human trafficking networks and businesses employing unauthorized immigrants. The initiative comes as part of a broader immigration enforcement strategy that has already resulted in 11,000 arrests within the first 18 days of Trump's second term.
