ICE should continue traffic stops despite recent shootings, Trump says on social media

President Donald Trump asserted on Wednesday that the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency must continue its practice of vehicle stops, even in the wake of recent fatal shootings involving its officers. Trump took to his social media platform to declare that ICE is performing a "GREAT job" that is essential.

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ICE is "doing a GREAT job, one that has to be done."

"We must be strong, tough, and smart, and we CANNOT give up one of ICE's most important and effective Crime Fighting tools, THE TRAFFIC STOP!" Trump wrote. He warned that ceasing these stops would play directly into the hands of criminals. His comments appear to contradict reports that ICE officers had been instructed to suspend most vehicle stops following two deadly shootings within a week.

An ICE officer fatally shot a Colombian driver in Maine on Monday, a week after another officer killed a motorist in Houston. These incidents have reignited criticism of the agency's enforcement tactics. On Tuesday in Florida, a third man died during an encounter with immigration officers, though authorities stated he was struck by a tractor-trailer while fleeing. Since the Trump administration's immigration crackdown began, at least 10 individuals have died in encounters with immigration agents, with at least four involving people in vehicles.

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We must be strong, tough, and smart, and we CANNOT give up one of ICE's most important and effective Crime Fighting tools, THE TRAFFIC STOP!

Policing experts have long cautioned that firing into moving vehicles poses significant risks and should generally be avoided. U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, had urged the Department of Homeland Security to "cease all non-urgent vehicle stops." John Sandweg, a former acting director at ICE, estimated that approximately 18 traffic stop shootings have occurred during the Trump immigration crackdown.

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Once we do, we are playing right into the criminal's hands.