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Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons issued a blunt warning this week that the wave of threats and violence targeting Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers has reached a breaking point, calling the pressure on men and women in uniform “just too much” as assaults and doxxing skyrocket. Lyons, speaking with national media, made clear these are not isolated incidents but a coordinated surge of harassment that imperils federal officers doing the hard work of enforcing the law. Americans who respect order should be alarmed that career public servants are being targeted for political theater instead of being protected.
Lyons and ICE have pointed to staggering year-over-year increases in assaults and threats against agents, with different briefings placing the spike in the hundreds of percent and, in some windows, reporting numbers exceeding a thousand percent. These are not abstract statistics; they translate to real danger on the front lines, where officers are arriving to carry out lawful arrests only to face ambushes, fireworks attacks, and persistent online campaigns to expose their identities. When law enforcement becomes the target, the entire rule-of-law collapses into chaos for the vulnerable communities those officers protect.
The tragic incidents that Lyons cited, from ambush-style attacks around detention facilities to the horrific sniper shooting outside Dallas-area sites, show the stakes in brutal relief. Doxxing, public “spotting” apps, and incendiary rhetoric have created an environment where extremists can locate and pursue federal officers with frightening ease. This is not compassion; it is a call to violence disguised as activism, and it demands a decisive response from leaders at every level.
Tech platforms were forced into the national conversation when Apple removed ICE-spotting apps after being contacted by law enforcement, a move the company said was motivated by safety concerns. Conservatives should be clear-eyed: while Big Tech too often censors conservative voices, in this case the removal curbed a tool that openly encouraged people to track federal agents and potentially place them in harm’s way. The lesson for Silicon Valley is simple — public safety outweighs performative politics, and companies must stop enabling threats against people who wear the badge.
Meanwhile, the federal crime crackdown in Memphis illustrates what happens when the administration stops nodding and starts acting — National Guard support, a multiagency task force, and coordinated arrests sent a message that lawlessness will not be tolerated. Local officials who want real results should welcome federal assistance rather than reflexively politicize it; the first duty of any government is to keep citizens safe, not to posture for headlines. If this country is to rebound, leadership has to back law enforcement with resources and resolve, not rhetorical hand-wringing.
This moment should be a wake-up call to elected officials, media outlets, and tech monopolies that have normalized vilifying immigration officers for political gain. Acting Director Lyons has pleaded for protection and common sense, and Washington must answer with accountability for those inciting violence and real support for the brave men and women who execute our laws. Hardworking Americans don’t want chaos in our streets — we want law and order, and we will stand with those who put their lives on the line to defend it.
