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Trump’s immigration tactics aren’t taking root in Louisiana
There’s scant evidence that the Trump administration’s intensified immigration enforcement is achieving its objective of removing a significant number of violent criminals. Aside from appealing to the most xenophobic elements of the MAGA crowd, the missions have had negligible practical or symbolic effect.
In Louisiana, Operation Catahoula Crunch is moving into its third week and appears to be losing steam and support, even among Republicans. Federal authorities have reported nearly 350 arrests, with fewer than 10% of those apprehended having a criminal record.
Documents the Associated Press obtained ahead of the operation indicated authorities intended to arrest 5,000 people in Southeast Louisiana. \*\*At its current pace, the campaign would need six months to reach that goal.\*\*
\*\*“Is going door to door, pulling people out of their houses and cars, is that the right way to do this?” Lt. Gov. Bill Nungesser told WRKF-FM. “I hope to God it’s not arresting people to reach a quota … I hope that’s not the fact because that has put the fear of God in a lot of people.”\*\*
This was Nungesser’s take last week after taking heat from a fellow Republican state leader, Gov. Jeff Landry, for prior comments on the topic of immigration. In a statement to The Times-Picayune, the governor’s office said it was “disappointing” that Nungesser had prioritized concerns for “individuals who enter our country illegally” over American citizens.
\*\*The lieutenant governor, as the state’s top tourism official, said he wants to relay concerns he’s heard from the hospitality industry to Landry.\*\*
“I’ve got hotel owners calling me, saying they can’t get the rooms clean because nobody is coming to work. Restaurant staff are not showing up, and these people building buildings can’t complete their projects because nobody’s coming to work,” Nungesser said. “We gotta fix that, and I don’t know how to fix it.”
\*\*If creating a climate of fear and crippling certain businesses was Trump’s goal, consider the early results from Catahoula Crunch “mission accomplished.”\*\*
Similar stories have been reported in other states where the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has conducted immigration crackdowns. And like Louisiana, the number of violent criminals apprehended has been relatively small.
For example, only \*\*1.5% of the 1,900 arrests in Operation Midway Blitz involved people with violent criminal backgrounds as of early December, with two-thirds having no record of any criminal offense other than an immigration violation, the Chicago Tribune reported.\*\*
The share of arrested immigrants with violent crime convictions has dropped from 9% in January to less than 5% in October. Under Biden, the rate stayed consistently between 10% and 11% during the same period in 2024. It was to be expected that a dramatic increase in total immigration arrests would water down the rate of violent offenders ensnared in the dragnets.
But what the Trump camp might not have expected was the pushback it would see when so many of its apprehensions involved immigrants with no past criminal concerns.
“All the immigration sweeps will maintain strong support if they are going after criminals,” Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-Louisiana, told WVUE-TV Fox 8 this week. “I think if they focus on criminals, they are going to have a lot of support. And if they go beyond that, I think people will scratch their head and say, ‘Why are we doing this?’”
Recent polling shows more have soured on U.S. immigration policy.
An Associated Press-National Opinion Research Center survey of more than 1,100 adults conducted Dec. 4-8 showed decreasing support for President Trump’s handling of immigration.
Nearly half of respondents backed his approach when polled in March, and the approval rate dropped to 38% this month. The decline is also evident among Republicans, falling from 88% to 80%.
#local
There’s scant evidence that the Trump administration’s intensified immigration enforcement is achieving its objective of removing a significant number of violent criminals. Aside from appealing to the most xenophobic elements of the MAGA crowd, the missions have had negligible practical or symbolic effect.
In Louisiana, Operation Catahoula Crunch is moving into its third week and appears to be losing steam and support, even among Republicans. Federal authorities have reported nearly 350 arrests, with fewer than 10% of those apprehended having a criminal record.
Documents the Associated Press obtained ahead of the operation indicated authorities intended to arrest 5,000 people in Southeast Louisiana. \*\*At its current pace, the campaign would need six months to reach that goal.\*\*
\*\*“Is going door to door, pulling people out of their houses and cars, is that the right way to do this?” Lt. Gov. Bill Nungesser told WRKF-FM. “I hope to God it’s not arresting people to reach a quota … I hope that’s not the fact because that has put the fear of God in a lot of people.”\*\*
This was Nungesser’s take last week after taking heat from a fellow Republican state leader, Gov. Jeff Landry, for prior comments on the topic of immigration. In a statement to The Times-Picayune, the governor’s office said it was “disappointing” that Nungesser had prioritized concerns for “individuals who enter our country illegally” over American citizens.
\*\*The lieutenant governor, as the state’s top tourism official, said he wants to relay concerns he’s heard from the hospitality industry to Landry.\*\*
“I’ve got hotel owners calling me, saying they can’t get the rooms clean because nobody is coming to work. Restaurant staff are not showing up, and these people building buildings can’t complete their projects because nobody’s coming to work,” Nungesser said. “We gotta fix that, and I don’t know how to fix it.”
\*\*If creating a climate of fear and crippling certain businesses was Trump’s goal, consider the early results from Catahoula Crunch “mission accomplished.”\*\*
Similar stories have been reported in other states where the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has conducted immigration crackdowns. And like Louisiana, the number of violent criminals apprehended has been relatively small.
For example, only \*\*1.5% of the 1,900 arrests in Operation Midway Blitz involved people with violent criminal backgrounds as of early December, with two-thirds having no record of any criminal offense other than an immigration violation, the Chicago Tribune reported.\*\*
The share of arrested immigrants with violent crime convictions has dropped from 9% in January to less than 5% in October. Under Biden, the rate stayed consistently between 10% and 11% during the same period in 2024. It was to be expected that a dramatic increase in total immigration arrests would water down the rate of violent offenders ensnared in the dragnets.
But what the Trump camp might not have expected was the pushback it would see when so many of its apprehensions involved immigrants with no past criminal concerns.
“All the immigration sweeps will maintain strong support if they are going after criminals,” Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-Louisiana, told WVUE-TV Fox 8 this week. “I think if they focus on criminals, they are going to have a lot of support. And if they go beyond that, I think people will scratch their head and say, ‘Why are we doing this?’”
Recent polling shows more have soured on U.S. immigration policy.
An Associated Press-National Opinion Research Center survey of more than 1,100 adults conducted Dec. 4-8 showed decreasing support for President Trump’s handling of immigration.
Nearly half of respondents backed his approach when polled in March, and the approval rate dropped to 38% this month. The decline is also evident among Republicans, falling from 88% to 80%.
#local
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