Argument over how to carry out Trump’s deportation ‘master plan’ got so heated that officials had to ‘clear the room,’ report says – UK Times

An internal dispute over how to carry out President Donald Trump’s deportation agenda grew so heated that officials had to “clear the room,” according to a new report.

The argument unfolded during a February 2025 meeting attended by Rodney Scott, the commissioner of Customs and Border Protection, and Caleb Vitello, who was then the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Scott and his deputies were advocating for a “master plan” — approved by then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem — that called for establishing a National Incident Command Center, which would tap the resources of ICE, CBP and the Pentagon, NBC News reported.

The plan was part of an effort to dramatically ramp up deportations to 1 million per year, lining up with the president’s promise to carry out the largest illegal immigrant expulsion program in U.S. history.

Under the scheme, federal agents would be authorized — without judicial warrants — to enter the last known addresses of immigrants under orders to leave the U.S. Detained individuals would face accelerated deportation proceedings with no avenue for appeal, DHS officials told the outlet.

However, during the winter sit-down, Vitello expressed concern about the policy change.

“He argued to Scott and his aides that the last known addresses of the 700,000 people with previous orders of removal hadn’t been verified recently,” NBC News reported. “He said he worried that U.S. citizens could get wrongfully swept up in the surges if agents entered homes without warrants, which require law enforcement agencies to show evidence to judges to gain access.”

Frustrated by the resistance, Scott pounded the table in anger, according to DHS officials, while Vitello stood his ground. Staffers for the two men quickly ended the meeting and “cleared the room.”

Noem was soon informed of the explosive meeting, and in a matter of days, Vitello was replaced by Todd Lyons as the acting director of ICE, the report says.

The Independent has contacted DHS, ICE and CBP for comment.

Although the incident command center never materialized, parts of the plan were implemented. In May, Lyons permitted federal agents to detain individuals with removal orders “in their residences” solely using warrants from ICE offices, not judges.

Vitello’s early warnings gained new significance when federal agents surged into Minneapolis, leading to the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens — Renee Good and Alex Pretti — in January. In a Marist poll conducted the following month, nearly two-thirds of Americans said ICE’s actions had gone too far.

The president himself acknowledged that a course correction was necessary, telling NBC News in February: “I learned that maybe we could use a little bit of a softer touch. But you still have to be tough.”

In March, as criticism of his immigration crackdown mounted, Trump fired Noem as DHS chief, making her the first Cabinet official ousted in his second term. Corey Lewandowski, her top aide, departed shortly after.

To date, the Trump administration has fallen well short of its goal of deporting 1 million people per year. During an April hearing, Lyons told lawmakers that 570,000 had been deported since Trump’s inauguration.

The reported dispute between Vitello and Scott is among several explosive arguments that have taken place in the Trump administration — at least one of which turned violent.

In April 2025, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Elon Musk, then the head of the Department of Government Efficiency, had a fiery shouting match in the White House while debating the future of the IRS, sources told Axios.

“They were not physical in the Oval, but the president saw it, and then they carried it down the hall, and that’s when they did it again,” one witness said.

On the reported dispute, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told Axios that “it’s no secret President Trump has put together a team of people who are incredibly passionate about the issues impacting our country.”

“Disagreements are a normal part of any healthy policy process,” her statement said. “And ultimately everyone knows they serve at the pleasure of President Trump.”

The billionaire CEO of SpaceX had reportedly also been involved in prominent disputes with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, the New York Times reports.