Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is preparing to spend as much as $100 million over a single year on an aggressive recruitment campaign designed to bring in more agents, with messaging aimed at gun-rights supporters and military enthusiasts, according to a new report.
The Washington Post reported that the agency plans to rely heavily on social media influencers and geo-targeted advertising to reach potential applicants. Officials are seeking to hire more than 10,000 new employees, framing the work as a “sacred duty” to “defend the homeland.”
According to the report, the ads are expected to target people who have attended UFC events, listened to patriotic podcasts, or shown interest in firearms, tactical gear, and military equipment. The outlet did not specify how much of the proposed budget has already been spent.
Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin described the recruitment effort as “wildly successful,” saying it is both under budget and ahead of schedule. She said ICE has received more than 220,000 applications in just five months and has issued over 18,000 tentative job offers. More than 85% of new hires have prior law-enforcement experience, she added.
The Washington Post also noted that Congress significantly increased ICE’s enforcement and deportation funding through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. As part of the expansion, the agency has removed age limits for applicants and is offering signing bonuses of up to $50,000.
Separately, ICE is reportedly working with contractors to renovate large industrial warehouses to detain more than 80,000 migrants. Instead of transferring detainees across the country based on space availability, the plan would establish a “feeder system” in which individuals are held at processing sites for weeks before being moved to large-scale detention centers.
The proposal includes seven major facilities capable of holding between 5,000 and 10,000 people each, along with 16 smaller sites designed for about 1,500 detainees apiece. Deportations would be carried out from these locations. The facilities are expected to be built near logistics hubs in states including Virginia, Texas, Louisiana, Arizona, Georgia, and Missouri.
These plans come as ICE arrests continue to rise nationwide. As of Dec. 14, 2025, the agency was detaining more than 68,400 people across the U.S., the highest number ever recorded in its biweekly data, according to an analysis by The Guardian.
That total surpasses a previous record set earlier in the month. Based on ICE figures tracked by the newspaper, the administration has arrested more than 328,000 people and deported nearly 327,000 since January.
