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National

The Department of Homeland Security is rushing to fulfill President Trump's mass deportation goals, and its haste has led to high-profile deportation screwups.

Why it matters: The high-visibility enforcement campaign has drawn attention to every tactic from Trump's immigration enforcers, including when they're on the wrong side of the law and public opinion.

The big picture: As of late January, DHS said it had deported 675,000 undocumented immigrants.

But from the earliest weeks of Trump 2.0, the administration has been challenged in the courts. 

It has dealt with backlash for ignoring judicial orders and had to apologize for some wrongful deportations, although some of those deported are still fighting to return. 

It has even faced ridicule after allowing a high-profile criminal suspect to avoid trial in the U.S. by asking for deportation. 

Below are five high-profile deportations that have gone awry.

A man charged in the "largest jewelry heist in U.S. history" was deported before his trial. Much of the jewelry has not been found, according to the Los Angeles Times.

An attorney for Jeson Nelon Presilla Flores, who was deported to Ecuador in December, argued that the case should be dismissed with prejudice so it can't be refiled. The judge is still determining how to dismiss the case and whether it can be refiled if Flores ever returns to the U.S.

DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said that Flores was a legal permanent resident but had his status revoked because of his criminal record. 

"It's just beyond me how they would deport him without the prosecutors... being in on the conversation," former federal prosecutor Laurie Levenson told The Guardian.

2. The college student wrongfully deported over Thanksgiving

Babson College student Any Lucia Lopez Belloza, 19, planned a surprise visit home from Boston to Texas over Thanksgiving break. But after being detained at the airport, she was deported back to Honduras roughly 48 hours later.

Belloza had a final order of removal but didn't know it. A judge ordered her not to be deported or moved out of state. But she was sent to Texas before the judge's order was seen and then deported.

"I want to sincerely apologize," Assistant US Attorney Mark Sauter said in Boston federal court, according to the Boston Globe. "The government regrets that violation and acknowledges that violation."

But the U.S. government is refusing to allow her to return, saying in early February she is still subject to the removal order and is ineligible for a student visa. "This illegal alien entered the country in 2014 and an immigration judge issued her a final order of removal in 2015. She was removed to Honduras. She received full due process," McLaughlin said.

3. The first deportee DHS had to bring back

A Guatemalan man wrongly deported to Mexico was returned to the U.S. in June after a judicial order.

Known by his initials O.C.G. in court records, his attorneys argued that the man shouldn't have been sent to Mexico because he'd been held for ransom and raped there. They successfully won a withholding agreement because O.C.G. also feared return to his native Guatemala.

But he was deported to Mexico, whose government sent him back to Guatemala. There he went into hiding, according to his lawyers, before he was returned to the U.S.

Kilmar Abrego Garcia's lawyers are fighting for their client to be deported to Costa Rica. The U.S. government is fighting to stop his removal, insisting he be sent to one of several African countries instead. 

Garcia was wrongfully deported to El Salvador in March and sent to the notorious prison CECOT. He was sent back to the U.S. in June and then charged with human trafficking, only to be released on a judge's order in December.

Garcia's team were able to secure refugee status for him since August in Costa Rica. Garcia lost his asylum case in 2019 but has a withholding order not to be returned to his native El Salvador.

His case is no longer unique, his lawyer Simon Sandoval-Moshenber told NPR. "There have been countless illegal deportation cases since then. If anything, the problem is getting worse and not better."

5. The hairdresser labeled as a dangerous gang member

Using the Alien Enemies Act, hair dresser and asylum seeker Andry Romero was expeditiously deported to El Salvador's CECOT prison. He'd used the Biden-era CBP One app to secure a credible fear interview, and was detained while trying to move through the legal immigration system.

The Trump administration alleged that Romero was a member of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, in part because of his tattoos. His family and friends told CNN that he was suspected of being a gang member as soon as he made his asylum claim, but was providing evidence to the contrary in his case.

Romero ended up back in Venezuela. But a federal judge recently ordered that Venezuelan men deported to CECOT, who aren't in Venezuela, be returned to the U.S. to continue their legal fights against their removals.

McLaughlin did not respond directly to Romero's case but said the administration was keeping Americans safe from gang members. 

Go deeper: ICE reveals $38B plan for immigrant mega-jails

ICE reveals $38B plan for immigrant mega-jails

5 of the most-botched deportations of Trump 2.0

The high-visibility enforcement campaign has drawn attention to every tactic from Trump's immigration enforcers.

Illustration of a handcuff in the shape of a question mark

Donald Trump

Immigration

2024 will be an election year like no other, as President Biden seeks re-election amid economic uncertainty, two wars and questions about his age. His likely foe, former President Trump, faces felony charges and vows revenge on his political enemies. Meanwhile, Americans generally are dissatisfied with those choices and are divided over immigration, race, education and more.

Politics & Policy

President Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed during their meeting at the White House on Wednesday that the U.S. will increase the economic pressure on Iran, mostly when it comes to oil sales to China, according to two U.S. officials briefed on the issue.

Why it matters: More than 80% of Iranian oil exports go to China. If China reduces its purchases of oil from Iran, the economic pressure on Iran would increase significantly. 

This could change Iran's calculus and push it to make more concessions regarding its nuclear program.

U.S. officials say the maximum pressure campaign will take place alongside the nuclear talks with Iran and the  ongoing military build-up in the Middle East for possible strikes if diplomacy fails. 

What they're saying: "We agreed that we will go full force with maximum pressure against Iran, for example, regarding Iranian oil sales to China," a senior U.S. official said.

Zoom in: An executive order signed by Trump 10 days ago will allow the U.S. to increase the economic pressure on Iran. 

The executive order gives the secretary of State and the secretary of Commerce the possibility to recommend that the president impose tariffs of up to 25% on any country that conducts business with Iran. 

Friction point: Any tariffs on China for buying Iranian oil would complicate what is already a tense relationship, with the U.S. trying to preserve the flow of vital rare earth magnets and protect a planned April summit in Beijing.

And while Iran is a major oil producer, markets are more concerned about regional disruptions if the Iranians took action to interrupt the flow of oil from other countries.

Behind the scenes: U.S. officials said Netanyahu and Trump agreed in their meeting on Wednesday about the necessary end state — an Iran without the capability to obtain nuclear weapons.

But they disagreed about the way to get there. Netanyahu told Trump it is impossible to make a good deal with Iran and claimed that even if a deal is signed, Iran will not abide by it, a U.S. official said.

The U.S. official said Trump told Netanyahu he thinks there is a chance to reach a deal with Iran.

"We'll see if it's possible. Let's give it a shot", Trump said according the the U.S. official.

In recent days, Trump asked his advisers Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner what are the odds for reaching a deal with Iran.

A U.S. official said Witkoff and Kushner told Trump that history shows it is difficult, if not impossible, to reach a good deal with Iran.

But they also told Trump that so far, the Iranians are saying all the right things. 

Kushner and Witkoff told Trump they will continue the negotiations and hold a tough line, and if the Iranians agree to a deal they think is satisfactory, they will give him the option so that he can decide if he wants to do it, a U.S. official said.

What's next: On Tuesday, Witkoff and Kushner will meet the Iranians in Geneva for a second round of negotiations.

Earlier this week, Witkoff conveyed messages to the Iranians through the Omani foreign minister. The U.S. expects to receive an Iranian response at the meeting in Geneva.

"We are sober and realistic about the Iranians. The ball is in their court. If it is not a real deal, we will not take it," a U.S. official said.

A second U.S. official said he thinks there is "zero chance" that Iran agrees to anything the U.S. proposes or vice versa. 

What to watch: Iranian journalist Ali Gholhaki wrote on X that Witkoff's messages included a U.S. proposal that Iran suspend its uranium enrichment for three to five years. After this period, Iran would allegedly be able to enrich Uranium to very low levels.

The alleged proposal also reportedly included the removal of 450 kilograms of highly enriched Uranium the Iranians currently have outside of the country. 

The Iranian reporter claimed this proposal has been rejected by Iran.

A U.S. official denied that the U.S.  presented such a proposal to the Iranians. 

Go deeper: U.S. and Iran set to hold second round of nuclear talks in Geneva

U.S. and Iran set to hold second round of nuclear talks in Geneva

Trump and Netanyahu agree to increase pressure on Iranian oil

Two men shake hands with flags behind them

President Trump shakes hands with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a press conference at Mar-a-Lago on Dec. 29, 2025, after a meeting on U.S.-Israel relations. Photo: Joe Raedle/ Getty Images

Iran

Joe Biden

Conflicts, policies and powers are intersecting and shaping the world. Breaking news and analysis of national security, foreign policy and global crises.

World

Breaking climate science and policy coverage as extreme weather events reshape communities. Keep tabs on the race to a low carbon economy, which may be bumpy as governments, climate tech startups and major oil and gas companies race to find their niche amid the changing energy landscape.

Energy & Climate

Latino

Axios Latino

Latino voters aren't realigning — they're fragmenting.

Consultants and pollsters tell Axios that after moving toward Donald Trump in 2024, the nation's fastest-growing electorate is splintering into competing political identities, with no single partisan anchor after decades as a reliably Democratic bloc.

Why it matters: This fracture helped reshape the 2024 election map — and it's one of the biggest wildcards in 2026 and 2028, even as the economy and Trump's aggressive immigration enforcement have given tailwinds to Democrats.

"It's a dealignment. It's not a realignment," Mike Madrid, a GOP consultant and author of "The Latino Century: How America's Largest Minority is Transforming Democracy," tells Axios.

He said Latinos — an ethnically diverse group that makes up 15% of the U.S. electorate — now have the least party loyalty of any major voting group, making them the bloc most likely to identify as independents.

The intrigue: Based on analyses of election data and interviews with political consultants, Axios has identified three distinct segments of Latino voters in 2026: MAGA Hispanics, Movement Progressives and Disillusioned Nonvoters.

1. MAGA Hispanics align with Trump-era Republican politics, often driven by economic populism, cultural conservatism and anti-establishment sentiment rather than traditional GOP ideology.

This group includes working-class men, small-business owners and evangelical or Catholic voters. They emphasize order, masculinity, religion and skepticism toward elites.

They get much of their political information through YouTube, Spanish-language radio, WhatsApp and podcasts.

2. Movement Progressives are anchored in left-leaning social and economic movements, including labor rights, racial justice, climate activism and student debt relief.

They skew younger, urban and college-educated, and are more likely to be women and to vote. But they're quick to disengage if candidates fall short of stated values.

They're politically active online via TikTok, Instagram and activist networks, and are intolerant of perceived political inauthenticity.

3. Disillusioned Nonvoters are politically aware but largely disengaged, often sitting out elections entirely or voting inconsistently.

They're overrepresented among working-class, young voters and those who often don't go to the polls. Think barbers, salon owners, ranch hands, bartenders and educational assistants.

These voters consume information through YouTube, Facebook, WhatsApp and peer networks, and have little trust in either political party, institutions and traditional media.

They're motivated primarily by economic pressure, not ideology — and when they do vote, it's unclear where they lean.

Zoom out: Middle-class and affluent Latinos don't sit outside these camps — they sort into them. 

College-educated professionals often cluster with Movement Progressives, while many entrepreneurs show up in the MAGA lane, for example.

What they're saying: "You can't just run one Latino message anymore and expect it to land," Democratic consultant Sisto Abeyta told Axios.

"Some voters are fired up. Some are skeptical. Some are barely paying attention at all."

Madrid said both parties should stop focusing on what accents to use or what music to play at rallies to try to win over targeted segments of the Latino vote.

"Latinos aren't listening to Ranchera music at construction sites as much as they're listening to Joe Rogan's podcast," he said. "We're the only ones who are a true swing vote for rational reasons."

Zoom in: The Latino voting bloc has always been more complex than it's often portrayed, from conservative Cuban Americans in South Florida to moderate Puerto Ricans in New York and Hispanics of various ideologies in Texas, California and elsewhere. 

Surveys have shown many Latino voters drifted to Trump in 2024 because they prioritized the economy, jobs and cost of living over traditional cultural or immigration issues — but that finding wasn't universal across regions and age groups.

Recent polling by the Pew Research Center has shown sharply negative assessments of Trump's performance among Latino adults, with nearly 70% disapproving of his job on immigration and the economy.

The detention of U.S. citizens, images of aggressive ICE agents and the shooting of two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis also have angered Latinos who previously backed Trump, polls show.

Trump and other GOP criticism of Puerto Rican megastar Bad Bunny's Super Bowl halftime show doesn't help, Republican analysts told Reuters.

Ex-Trump administration official Vianca Rodriguez said the criticism is "going to do us more damage than good" and "shouldn't have been a battle to have been picked culturally."

In a Yahoo/YouGov poll, 42% of 1,704 U.S. adults said Bad Bunny "better represents America," compared to 39% who said Trump Feb. 9–12.

Editor's note: This story has been updated with an added poll and analyst remarks.

Axios

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