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Instead of a quiet day of gratitude, Law Enforcement Appreciation Day came Friday amid escalating conflict over the actions of federal authorities, especially those involving U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol agents, and harsh rhetoric from Democratic elected officials.
The Department of Homeland (DHS) noted that its officers face a 1,300% increase in assaults, a 3,200% increase in vehicular attacks, and an 8,000% increase in death threats against them as they carry out immigration enforcement operations across the country.
“On this Law Enforcement Appreciation Day, I want to take a moment to express how thankful I am every single day for the men and women who put on the badge and put their lives on the line to protect the American people,” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement. “With more than 80,000 officers and agents, our Department is the largest law enforcement agency in the federal government. We recognize the sacrifice you and your families make to protect and serve the American people and our great country.”
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The praise came as federal authorities have increasingly come under attack and scrutiny over the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration and the removal of migrants with criminal records.
Federal authorities in Minnesota currently face mounting criticism from Minneapolis and state officials following Wednesday’s fatal shooting of a woman who allegedly attempted to ram her vehicle into an ICE agent.
Several Democrats have said that ICE and federal authorities are the cause of unrest and chaos unfolding in communities where they operate and have demanded that they leave.
On Friday, the White House released a list of “57 Times Sick, Unhinged Democrats Declared War on Law Enforcement.”
“California Gov. Gavin Newsom likened ICE to “secret police,” calling them “authoritarian” and calling for people to “push back,” the list states.
“Boston Mayor Michelle Wu compared ICE officers to a neo-Nazi group,” another said.
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The list features Democratic mayors, governors and members of Congress comparing federal immigration authorities to terrorists and Nazi Germany, as well as calls to abolish such agencies.
Meanwhile, multiple Republicans lauded law enforcement officers on social media.
Noem and President Donald Trump have backed federal officers amid the criticism.
“President Trump and I will always stand with you,” Noem said. “Please take some time today to thank an officer or agent today. Make them a meal, buy them a cup of coffee, or simply thank them. To every officer who puts on the badge each day: Thank you. Your service is paramount to our nation’s safety.”
In a Friday news release, DHS highlighted several incidents in which federal officers have acted heroically.
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On April 26, 2025, ICE officers in Dallas saw a pickup truck lose a tire, roll seven times, and land upside-down. The officers and two bystanders pried open the truck’s door and pulled the driver to safety, the agency said. An off-duty EMT stopped to help until police and paramedics arrived.
In Denver, ICE officers were traveling to a detention facility in Broadview, Illinois, which has been the target of protests and violence, on Sept. 25 when they approached the scene of a fiery collision between a semi-truck, a small passenger car and two other vehicles.
The officers extracted a man with his legs pinned under the dashboard inside moments before the vehicle became fully engulfed in flames. He was provided first aid and several ICE officers suffered from slight smoke inhalation and lacerations.
Other incidents include a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agent saving a driver, who was missing his left arm, from an overturned truck in Texas. The agent also grabbed the detached limb and provided first aid to the man.
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Another HSI agent detained a suspected hit-and-run driver who tried to flee the scene after causing a multi-vehicle wrong-way hit-and-run crash in Washington, D.C., officials said. The agent was on his way to work when he saw the driver fleeing on foot. He chased him down and detained him until authorities arrived.
A group of HSI agents on a road between the border city of Brownsville, Texas, and San Benito, Mexico came to the aid of an injured motorcyclist who was sideswiped by a minivan, officials said.
In Alabama, an HSI agent driving home from a training event came across a vehicle positioned sideways on a road in the path of oncoming traffic with a woman trapped inside. The engine compartment caught fire, so the agent smashed a window to help free her.
“Just then, two other vehicles sped around the blind curve,” DHS said of the incident. “To avoid being mowed down, the agent had to grab the bridge railing, leap over to the other side, then hang there as the cars sped by. One of the speeding cars then struck the disabled van, causing the fire to grow.”
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The agent rushed back to the van and pulled the woman from the burning vehicle. Everyone survived with minor injuries.
Federal authorities from several offices also conducted rescues and life-saving efforts after floods in San Antonio, Texas, DHS said.
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