ICE Recruitment Tactics and the Killing of Renee Good

ICE Recruitment Strategy

• 🎯 ICE is employing a "wartime recruitment strategy" with a $100 million budget, targeting gun-rights supporters and military enthusiasts through online influencers and geo-fencing ads.
• 📣 Recruitment ads have been linked to white nationalist slogans and lyrics, particularly after the killing of Renee Good by an ICE agent.
• ⚠️ The agency is reportedly recruiting volunteers with minimal vetting or training due to concerns that experienced agents might disagree with the mission.

Internal Agency Discontent

• 💬 Despite public bravado from officials like Kirstjen Nielsen, internal communications reveal significant disquiet within ICE and Border Patrol regarding the shooting of Renee Good and the agency's overall mission.
• 📉 Experienced agents are reportedly hesitant to volunteer for surge operations, leading to new recruits being deployed without adequate experience.

Budget and Congressional Opposition

• 💰 ICE's budget has tripled, leading to a surplus of funds that the agency is using to meet personnel targets.
• ✊ Progressive Democrats and some Senators are opposing new funding for DHS without significant reforms, citing concerns about agency impunity and escalating violence.
• 🏛️ However, congressional leadership appears unwilling to shut down the government over these funding disputes.

Use of Force Policies and NSPM7

• 📜 ICE's use of force policies have not been updated since Trump took office, despite the agency's expanded mission and militarization.
• 🚫 These policies fail to address critical issues like protests, civil unrest, or rioters, and the documents were only made public through a court-ordered release.
• ⚖️ A direct link is drawn between the killing of Renee Good and National Security Presidential Memorandum 7 (NSPM7), which redefines terrorism to include sentiments against institutions like ICE, and actions like impeding ICE operations.

ICE's Perceived Acceptance of Violence

• 💥 The agency's policies, combined with recruitment propaganda portraying deployments as "war zones," create an environment where agents may genuinely believe they are in danger, leading to a perceived acceptance of lethal force.
• 🚩 The current policies offer broad excuses for ICE killings, with the primary restraint being agents' own perception of danger, rather than robust policy safeguards.