Trump ICE Vehicle Stops Resumed After the President Overturned a Temporary Pause Imposed Following Fatal Shootings in Houston and Maine
Donald Trump ordered federal immigration officials to resume most vehicle stops Wednesday after reportedly becoming furious that the enforcement tactic had been temporarily suspended without his knowledge.
The White House reversed the pause less than a day after reports that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents had been directed to largely stop initiating vehicle stops. The temporary restriction followed two fatal shootings involving ICE agents in Houston and Maine.
According to CNN, neither Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin nor White House border czar Tom Homan informed Trump before the pause was implemented.
Trump reportedly learned about the change through news coverage portraying his administration as retreating from its aggressive immigration enforcement agenda. He responded early Wednesday by publicly rejecting the suspension.
“The Radical Left Dumocrats would like to see this done, but it won’t happen on my watch,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
The White House later confirmed that the guidance had been reversed.
Fatal ICE Shootings Prompted Temporary Pause
The Trump administration suspended most ICE vehicle stops following the deaths of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston and Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Biddeford, Maine.
Both men were killed during federal immigration operations, although neither was reportedly the intended target of the operation underway when he was shot. Their deaths prompted protests, calls for independent investigations and renewed questions about the agency’s use of force.
Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old construction worker, was fatally shot July 7 while driving a van carrying members of his work crew. Three men who were inside the vehicle have disputed the Department of Homeland Security’s account that the van threatened federal agents.
Their attorney said an ICE officer fired through the passenger-side window. Federal officials have not publicly released body-camera footage or other evidence supporting their version of the encounter.
Durán Guerrero was killed days later during an attempted vehicle stop in Maine. His death led to protests and criticism from state and local officials demanding greater accountability from ICE.
Homan said Tuesday that the suspension was intended to be temporary while officials reviewed safety procedures. Exceptions remained available when agents were serving criminal warrants or working with other law enforcement agencies.
The Department of Homeland Security also pledged to accelerate the nationwide deployment of body cameras following the shootings.
Also Read: Kamala Harris Condemns Fatal ICE Shooting of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo as ‘Horrifying’
MAGA Figures Attack Decision as Weak
The temporary pause quickly drew criticism from influential figures within Trump’s political base, who accused administration officials of undermining the president’s mass deportation campaign.
Conservative attorney Mike Davis sharply criticized Mullin during an appearance Wednesday on Steve Bannon’s “War Room.”
“You work for President Trump, you don’t work for Senate Democrats, you don’t work for Susan Collins,” Davis said. “This guy needs to stop being a wimp, he needs to stop being weak, he needs to stop being stupid. If he’s not up to doing the job, get the hell out of the job and we’ll put someone there who can.”
The criticism placed additional pressure on an administration already attempting to balance officer safety concerns with Trump’s demand for thousands of immigration arrests each day.
Vehicle stops have become an important part of ICE’s expanded enforcement strategy because they allow agents to arrest people away from homes, workplaces and courthouses. Suspending those operations, even briefly, threatened to slow the administration’s deportation efforts.
Mullin Signals Support for Trump’s Reversal
After Trump intervened, Mullin shared the president’s Truth Social message and said immigration arrests would continue wherever agents encounter people suspected of being in the country illegally.
Our #1 goal is to keep our officers safe and get criminals OFF our streets. Illegal aliens will be arrested and deported wherever they are. If you are here illegally, LEAVE NOW. As our officers carry out operations to enforce our nations laws, they are facing a more than 1,300%… pic.twitter.com/dnI1YJAN3N
— Secretary Markwayne Mullin (@SecMullinDHS) July 15, 2026
“Our #1 goal is to keep our officers safe and get criminals OFF our streets,” Mullin wrote on X. “Illegal aliens will be arrested and deported wherever they are. If you are here illegally, LEAVE NOW.”
The rapid reversal created another shift in instructions for ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations division, which is responsible for locating, arresting and deporting undocumented immigrants.
Trump maintained that vehicle stops are among ICE’s most effective enforcement methods and urged agents to continue using them despite the recent deaths.
The shootings remain under investigation as elected officials, civil rights organizations and the victims’ families continue pressing for evidence, transparency and independent reviews of the agents’ actions.
