CBS News Ripped For Claiming ICE Rarely Arrests Violent Criminals
CBS News said Trump is deporting mostly peaceful illegal aliens – they omit burglars, drunk drivers, and pedophiles.
CBS News is taking heat for a misleading report that claims only 14% of illegal aliens arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) are violent criminals.
That number, based reportedly on an “internal Department of Homeland Security [DHS] document,” does not include “[d]rug trafficking, human smuggling, child porn, fraud, DUI, burglary,” according to the White House Rapid Response account.
“Violent crime includes estimates for the offenses of murder and nonnegligent manslaughter, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault,” an FBI document from last year explains.
Reporter Camilo Montoya-Galvez said the report debunks claims by the Trump administration.
“The internal DHS figures undermine frequent assertions by the Trump administration that its crackdown on illegal immigration is primarily targeting dangerous and violent criminals living in the U.S. illegally,” Montoya-Galvez wrote.
New CBS News Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss, who was ostensibly brought in to get rid of deep-seated political bias at the outlet, boosted the story as well on her X account.
Is Trump really deporting the worst of the worst?
Scoop here from @camiloreports in @TheFP who got DHS internal docs . . . https://t.co/rZ5iH9cQKT
— Bari Weiss (@bariweiss) February 9, 2026
CBS did update the story with a comment from DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin, who stated: “Drug trafficking, Distribution of child pornography, burglary, fraud, DUI, embezzlement, solicitation of a minor, human smuggling are all categorized as ‘nonviolent crimes.'”
Many commentators pointed this out on X and criticized CBS News for bias.
“I refuse to accept the premise that additional crimes (and only certain ones; they are free to steal our identities, and it’s like la-di-da) are the standard for deportation. It is not,” Townhall columnist Kurt Schlichter wrote.
I refuse to accept the premise that additional crimes (and only certain ones; they are free to steal our identities and it’s like la-di-da) are the standard for deportation. It is not.
Every illegal alien must go. Every. Single. One. “Dreamers.” Abuelas. Frauds seeking asylum… https://t.co/RsKFDgx5Zj
— Kurt Schlichter (@KurtSchlichter) February 9, 2026
“Nearly 70% of criminal aliens detained by ICE have pending charges or prior convictions,” the law enforcement agency itself wrote in a response to CBS.
Others pointed out that someone can be deported even without a “violent crime.”
For context, 14% of ICE arrests are for violent criminals because crimes like Drug trafficking, Distribution of child pornography, burglary, fraud, DUI, embezzlement, solicitation of a minor, human smuggling are all categorized as “non violent crimes.”
Per DHS, 70% of those… https://t.co/6vaGqu82dP
— Esther Valdes Clayton (@Esther_Valdes) February 9, 2026
That article shows that 60% of illegal aliens arrested by ICE had some other crime aside from immigration.
So, yes, identity theft isn’t a violent crime, but I’m happy those people are being arrested and deported https://t.co/ZvqveKrNXN
— Ryan James Girdusky (@RyanGirdusky) February 9, 2026
Apparently according to CBS it’s immoral to deport identity thieves, fraudsters, drunk drivers, smugglers, and human traffickers because these crimes can be committed non-violently. Needless to say, most Americans want these people deported, as they do every illegal alien. https://t.co/J6jl19LnQg
— Batya Ungar-Sargon (@bungarsargon) February 9, 2026
Meet the new CBS News, same as the old CBS News.
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to the full extent allowed by law.
Comments
Instead of saying, “trust us”, give us the data used to write the story and we’ll see if the math is mathing.
Never forget that maths is rwaaaacist!
I’m fine with them deporting people who’s only offense is crossing the border illegally.
What, victims of Joe’s bait and switch con? You meanie!
This * 1000. We already have a process that is ridiculously too lax for an asylum claim. You can even legally immigrate here at the border now and stay until your ridiculously slow hearing comes around.
If you skip that, then you need to be deported. The only reason for anyone to illegally cross the border is to either hide their other crimes or they believe they can evade removal longer that way than if they make a fake asylum claim and skip out on the hearing.
Every illegal alien must go. Every. Single. One. “Dreamers.” Abuelas. Frauds seeking asylum…
I agree with Kurt.
Democrats and their allies are all in on the pedo bus, and any other bus that guarantees them unquestioning votes when they need them.
The vile, dishonest and evil Dhimmi-crats’/Dhimmi-crat media’s contrivance of this notion that ICE should only be focused on “violent” illegal aliens, is a total red herring distraction tactic.
ICE has lawful authority to arrest and deport all illegal aliens (criminals by dint of their illegal entry into the U.S.), whether they are deemed to be “violent” criminals, or, non-violent criminals.
Gotta love how the dishonest communist propagandists want to ignore the simple fact that the people being deported are ALL criminals. Additionally to entering the country illegally or staying past their visa, it would have been necessary for them to commit other crimes to stay here. Either they worked under the table for cash which is tax evasion or they stole someone’s social security number to get a job which is identity theft. THEY ALL NEED TO GO, and I don’t give a damn what order it’s in.
Also interesting that the d/prog and other surrogates for illegal aliens didn’t include crimes not committed in the USA. So they’d protect a violent foreign criminal who enters the USA illegally. Nor does their list encompass a huge number of felony crimes or address the impact of admitting sketchy aliens from Nations with inadequate reporting or plagued by corruption so no honest criminal history check could be run. Finally they absolutely refuse to address folks like Jose Ibarra, Laken Riley’s killer, who apparently didn’t have a ‘violent crime’ on file despite his 2023 arrest in NYC for child endangerment and NYC cutting him loose after refusing ICE detainer.
Also to be included…those who have played out their string and have final orders of removal, but never left.
And just like that the left loves Weiss again.
Although it’s still incredibly disappointing that she was brought in to clean up cBS news and she releases this drivel that is purely leftist in view.
This Bari pretending to be somewhat sensible/conservative to gain viewers is similar to another Barry doing same to gain votes..
Barry succeeded no sweat but Barri going down like Wapo – alienating her base and recruiting zero mags people.
You know BS when you CBS… I guess little has changed.
Surprise.
I don’t care deport them ALL! They should also pass a law that if you are deported for being illegal you will never be allowed into this country again.
Force them to self deport.
Hell I have a list of so-called Americans I’d like to deport too (down Milhouse!).
Why the focus on only violent crime? The fraud perpetrated by the Somalis in Minneapolis was not violent but few would suggest that this is acceptable behavior for immigrants – legal or otherwise.
They, the Liberals (and others) calling themselves Democrats are NOT Democrats: they are socialists, terrorists, drug dealers, and other criminals dedicated to the destruction of our country:
the United States of America
In other words, Democrats.
“The goal of socialism is communism.” -Lenin.
Demsocialists are using all the old Soviet tactics to spread the “warmth” of collectivism.
Thugs they are.
Immaterial, DEPORT THEM ALL.
Yep. Every last one. No exceptions. No sob stories. If abuela came here illegally 40 years ago that’s tough cookies. Don’t want ICE showing up and kicking in the door like the photos of Elian Gonzalez then sign her up for the APP so she can get a free plane ticket and some $ in her pocket to go home and apply for lawful reentry.
Wait until they arrest the violent illegals behind the kidnapping of the prominent liberal journalist’s mother. Certainly that will…….
Okay, so it won’t make any difference. Never mind then.
Just wait. If they are illegals that kidnapped her, we’ll be gaslit with a new term ala “White Hispanic.”. Perhaps “MAGA illegals” or “Right wing anti news Trump supporting foreigners.” Something along those lines.
Human trafficking and child pornography should not classified as “non-violent” crimes. It’s offensive to the victims who do in fact suffer a great deal of violence at the hands of the perpetrators.
b/c the left changed the meanings of violence just like they move the goalposts on anything and everything they fear
Human smuggling is a non-violent offense? There are a number of things “downstream” from it that are very violent, such as what happens if a smuggled alien is in arrears with his payments to the coyotes or snakeheads.
“Less than 14% of nearly 400,000 immigrants arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in President Trump’s first year back in the White House had charges or convictions for violent criminal offenses, according to an internal Department of Homeland Security document obtained”
So, if we use the bullshit numbers of CBS that still means that the Trump Administration deported 56,000 violent criminal illegals. Why is that bad, CBS?
100% of illegal “immigrants” committed the crime of entering or remaining in this country illegally. Thus they are all criminals, and those who assist them are accessories to their crimes.