DHS list flop just one sign of sloppy immigration crackdown

Last weekend, the Department of Homeland Security abruptly removed from its official website a bizarre list of more than 500 targeted localities across the nation, broadly accusing their elected leaders of defying enforcement of federal immigration law and urging some kind of corrective action.

The alleged "sanctuary jurisdictions" list posted just days before included Suffolk, among 15 counties in New York State. GOP County Executive Ed Romaine stated the obvious when he said Suffolk is no sanctuary county. East Hampton also was on the list — but with neither town nor village specified. "The Town of East Hampton is not defying federal immigration law, and there is no question about our position. We are in compliance," East Hampton Town Supervisor Kathee Burke-Gonzalez and East Hampton Town Police Chief Michael Sarlo said in a joint statement. The town, of course, includes the village.

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem owes an explanation at the very least to the municipalities she politically smeared and intimidated, intentionally or not — including those in red states whose leaders enthusiastically support President Donald Trump and his enforcement efforts. Just before the list was deleted, National Sheriffs' Association President Kieran Donahue put it in professional perspective, saying the "arbitrary" notification was "created without any input, criteria of compliance, or a mechanism for how to object to the designation."

But the problem goes deeper than bureaucratic glitches, any possible AI errors, or even overreaching executive orders.

The legality — let alone the practicality — of detaining numerous immigrants at Guantánamo Bay at a cost of $100,000 to $130,000 per person per day as per several estimates, is under challenge in court. Ignoring laws makes deportations, justified or not, particularly inefficient because skipping over legal guidelines has brought repeated court rebukes and orders to stop or return some deportees. This week, a Guatemalan national deported to Mexico was returned to the U.S. — as ordered by a judge. Other DHS stumbles are probably in store.

Policymakers need to seriously ask what will have been accomplished and at what cost from the procedural setbacks to come. Doing this without congressional input has brought sloppy results.

Frustration boiled over at the top last month. In a meeting, Trump aide Stephen Miller, alongside Noem, reportedly screamed for immigration agents to arrest 3,000 people a day, essentially tripling earlier totals and pushing the capacity of ICE agents and facilities to meet such goals. Since the administration has successfully pushed down the number of border crossings, the new pressure will be on non-border communities and could mean more urban confrontations.

Measures ranging from meaningless lists to wide-net deportations appear designed to show a push by Trump to shore up his pie-in-the-sky campaign promise to deport 11 million noncitizens. The administration’s performative crusade on illegal immigration has been a hot mess of puzzling, unfocused and skimpily planned actions, falling short of competent execution. Long Islanders have to wonder where the posing on this topic ends — and when the governance begins.