Dr. Phil joined a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) team in Chicago as they conducted deportation operations under the incoming Trump administration.
On Sunday, Phil McGraw, often known as “Dr. Phil,” joined border czar Tom Homan and a team of agents as they detained a number of illegal immigrants. This comes after Homan announced Chicago to be “ground zero” for immigration enforcement under President Donald Trump’s mass deportation agenda.
Dr. Phil filmed a number of arrests for his Merit TV show, including an interview with a convicted sex offender and cyber predator from Thailand who was living illegally in Chicago.
“Not really,” the man responded.
“Not really!?” Dr. Phil exclaimed.
The man claimed he had never been deported and that his mother was a United States citizen. He recognized Dr. Phil from his television appearances and frequently avoided the famed psychologist’s queries.
Homan informed Dr. Phil that the man represented failing sanctuary city policy.
“We got an illegal alien convicted of sex crimes against children. “He’s walking the streets of Chicago,” Homan explained. “Again, the problem with sanctuary cities—people like this strolling the streets rather than local law enforcement collaborating with federal agents. This is what we are dealing with.
Trump has slammed sanctuary towns, notably Chicago, for opposing federal immigration regulations. “We’re aiming to get rid of them (sanctuaries).
Dr. Phil said on the broadcast that he had to be briefed on stringent security precautions as part of the “high-risk mission.”
“This truly is a targeted ICE mission because they’re not sweeping neighborhoods like people are trying to imply,” he told me. “I know this because I was part in the planning. They’ve identified 270 high-value targets, which includes known criminals and terrorists.
ICE arrested approximately 460 people in the first few days of an immigration sweep, which targeted unauthorized immigrants with criminal backgrounds. Sexual assault, domestic violence, and weapon crimes were among the offenses committed.
During a conversation in a Chicago-based ICE command center, Dr. Phil inquired whether agents were going into schools to apprehend children in the United States.
“Is anything like that happening?” he inquired.
“No, sir,” Homan replied.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has pledged to protect the city’s migrant population from federal immigration crackdowns, reaffirming the city’s sanctuary city laws.
“I find it unconscionable that this administration would attempt to create not just division but fear within our public schools,” Johnson added, alluding to probable federal raids. He instructed city departments to “stand firm and uphold the local ordinance” in accordance with the Illinois Trust Act, which forbids local law enforcement from helping federal immigration enforcement activities.
