People who listen to country music radio, attend a NASCAR race, step foot near a military base, or follow online fitness influencers may notice an uptick in targeted advertisements from the Department of Homeland Security next year, as it attempts to recruit more Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
In the coming year, ICE plans to spend $100 million to recruit individuals who may be a good fit to assist in furthering President Donald Trump’s mass deportation agenda by targeting military enthusiasts, gun rights supporters, people interested in physical training and conservative politics, according to an internal document seen by the Washington Post.
The plan, reportedly dubbed the “wartime recruitment” strategy by ICE, outlines an aggressive acceleration in strategic marketing that ICE has already used to recruit more than 200,000 individuals to join the agency as it seeks to deport swaths of immigrants from the U.S.
New strategies include targeting recruitment ads to individuals on a military base, attending a NASCAR race or gun trade show, or at a college campus through “geofencing” – a technical strategy where advertisers can create a virtual boundary around a real area to trigger ads on web browsers or social media for people in the location.
The 30-page document also indicates ICE may partner with online influencers, some of whom could be former agents, veterans, or “pro-ICE,” who have Gen-Z and millennials audiences with interests that align with the military or fitness.
Those influencers would be expected to host live streams, attend events or post content online targeted toward “niche communities.”
Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said they would not confirm or deny any leaked documents but praised the Washington Post for highlighting Trump and Secretary Kristi Noem’s “wildly successful ICE recruitment campaign, which is under budget and ahead of schedule.”
McLaughlin said ICE received more than 220,000 applications in five months and has issued more than 18,000 tentative job offers. She added that more than 85 percent of new hires have previous law enforcement experience.
McLaughlin stressed that new law enforcement hires meet “the same rigorous standards” that apply to all officers and those deployed in the field attend a virtual Deportation Officer Training Program as well as an in-person firearm and tactical training program at a local field office.
Over the last year, ICE has launched ad campaigns on television, radio, web browsers, streaming services and at in-person sporting events to attract potential recruits. Some of the ads target disgruntled police officers in major cities such as Chicago or Seattle. Others highlight signing bonuses of $50,000, generous benefits and even student loan forgiveness.
The agency has been specifically targeting Gen Z and early-career professionals as potential recruits, according to internal documents seen in August. Officials have been utilizing social media and streaming services to reach more than 42 million people in specific audience groups that may be a good fit for roles in ICE.
The recent document seen by the Post indicates that those techniques are becoming more narrowly-tailored as the administration continues to fulfill Trump’s campaign promise to deport undocumented immigrants and reduce overall immigration to the U.S.
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