I met a retired career ICE /CBP agent today
He retired in 2010 by aging out and works for local county jail now. He helps run a self defense course for old ladies. Which is how I met him.
We talked about the current state of affairs with ICE, and he clearly disapproves, though careful about what he said. But here are my take aways. - Anecdotal though they may be - this is a man who has spent the better part of 40 years in law enforcement and 21 of in with the feds.
The reason HHS is hiring so many agents isn't to get more done. It's to replace agents who quit or retired rather than work under DJT. The agency has pulled staff from other places, including detention centers to be in the field. Often not properly trained for field work.
Career field agents have an unfortunate tendency to try to show off for new recruits or facility staff.
Social media is buried in stories of the bad actors in ICE - and law enforcement generally - but the vast majority of encounters are peaceful, respectful and humane.
Conditions at detention facilities were pretty bad due to overcrowding when he retired, but there were some improvements thanks to the additional facilities opened under Biden. He doesn't know what it is like now, probably not good due to understaffing.
Border encounters are going down but that is probably because DJT has pulled the focus from the border to the interior. With less agents "at the wall" and at crossings, the potential is higher for new illegal entries. He made clear that is his personal opinion because "that wall is not nor ever was secure". He said during his time at the border, officers were more concerned with rendering aid to hot dehydrated people, than capturing desperados for social media likes.
We did not specifically talk about the shooting. But he sort of danced around it. He mentioned de-escalating situations repeatedly.
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