American support for deporting illegal immigrants is growing — and it’s putting wind in President Trump’s sails.
A recent AP-NORC survey shows a significant shift: the percentage of Americans who say the Trump administration has not gone far enough on deportations jumped from 14 percent in February to 18 percent in August.
Meanwhile, opposition is softening. Those who say Trump has “gone too far” on deporting illegal immigrants dropped from 52 percent to 47 percent in the same period.
18 percent of Americans now say Trump isn’t going far enough on deportations — up from 14 percent in February.
The poll listed a series of immigration enforcement scenarios, asking respondents whether the Trump administration’s actions were too aggressive, about right, or not aggressive enough.
On sending federal immigration agents into U.S. cities, the “gone too far” camp shrank from 62 percent in February to 55 percent in August. At the same time, those saying Trump hasn’t gone far enough rose from 10 percent to 15 percent.
The same pattern holds for restricting legal immigration: 14 percent now say Trump isn’t doing enough, up from 11 percent in February.
The AP noted that despite the current negative news cycle surrounding Immigration and Customs Enforcement, “public opinion on immigration remains largely unchanged.”
Republicans and Democrats largely held their positions from February. But independents shifted: they’re now less likely to say Trump has gone too far and more likely to say he hasn’t gone far enough on enforcement.
The survey was conducted July 23-27, 2026, among 1,165 adults nationwide with a margin of error of +/- 3.7 percent.
The results come as the Department of Homeland Security continues removing what it calls the “worst of the worst” from American streets.
Over the past weekend, ICE arrested criminal illegal aliens with convictions including homicide, sexual assault of a child, sexual intercourse with a minor, second-degree rape, sex assault, aggravated battery, burglary, and kidnapping.
“While Americans were enjoying their weekend, ICE law enforcement was arresting murderers, pedophiles, rapists, kidnappers, and other criminal illegal aliens across the country.”
A DHS spokesperson added that with these criminals off the streets and out of the country, it’s no wonder crime rates have reached record lows under the Trump administration.
The men and women of ICE work every single day to remove dangerous criminals from our communities and make America safe again.
