Acting Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Todd Lyons testifies during a House Homeland Security Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 10, 2026. Lawmakers pressed Lyons on immigration enforcement tactics, body camera use and accountability following recent incidents in Minnesota. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)
Lyons revealed this during questioning by Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla. Lankford asked Lyons to communicate his gratitude to the men and women in immigration enforcement, commenting, "Two years ago, we had 10,000 people a day illegally crossing into the country, two years ago, 10,000 people a day not vetted, had no idea who they were."
Lankford also pointed out that "70,000 people were estimated by the Biden administration to come in in 2024 that were special interest aliens that had a locational connection to terrorism."
"But we had no idea who they were. They were allowed to be able to come into the country two years ago," he lamented.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents conduct an arrest in Chicago, Illinois, on January 26, 2025. (Immigration and Customs Enforcement/Handout via REUTERS)
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"There are thousands of arrests that are happening in a day that are happening by the book," he continued. "And what's happening is a group of protesters that are protesting and agitating, and some of them running into churches and disturbing church services and saying, ‘It's my First Amendment right to shut down your church during a service.’ And saying they're a peaceful protester while they throw rocks at agents, it just gets old."
Peter Pinedo is a politics writer for Fox News Digital.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/over-1-5-million-illegal-aliens-deportation-orders-us-ice-director-reveals