As all know by now, Republicans got an historical ass-kicking in the midterms. There were multiple reasons for it, but the election was a referendum on Donald Trump. People voted as if he were on the ballot. While exit polls showed corruption and the cost of living as the two main factors motivating people to vote the way they did, it appears there was a general revulsion toward Donald Trump. Part of that was his immigration policy. Once the issue generated the most favorable ratings for Donald Trump. Recent polling data shows public disapproval. The RealClearPolitics polling average from late October 2026 showed 43.1% approval and 54.2% disapproval of his handling of immigration.
The murder by ICE agents of Alex Pettie and Renea Good in Minneapolis in January 2026 drew widespread public revulsion and became a defining moment in the public’s reaction to Trump's immigration policy and concerns about federal use of force and accountability. Also, the separation of families and deporting immigrants to hell-hole countries that were not the immigrants' country of origin, the rounding up of one's neighbors, co-workers, service people with whom one did business, and the general cruelty of the mass deportation process, and the demonizing of immigrants caused people to view Trump's immigration policy less favorably.
President Trump has sent mixed signals since the election, suggesting at one point that detention and deportation policies may have been "too tough," while simultaneously promoting immigration-policy architect Stephen Miller and retaining officials who say deportations will continue.
CoreCivic has done well under Trump's deportation regime. It made a lot of money, including about $1.3 billion in the most recent quarter from selling four detention centers to the Department of Homeland Security as immigrant detention expanded nationwide. The company is seeking additional sales of detention facilities to ICE and said discussions about further acquisitions are underway, though still preliminary.
Democrats have campaigned on increased oversight of ICE and have pledged investigations and scrutiny of detention practices and immigration enforcement. CoreCivic and ICE have faced criticism over detention conditions and enforcement policies. There have been allegations involving poor or unsafe conditions at detention centers and controversy surrounding facility purchases. An example, cited in a Tennessee Lookout article, highlighted a Minnesota detention facility that CoreCivic reportedly offered to sell to the state for $75 million in 2025, but which ICE later purchased for $485.6 million. Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison has called for a congressional investigation into the transaction.
I look forward to the investigation of ICE, and I also want to know if any of Trump's family and friends are lining their own pockets by the imprisonment of immigrants. There will be investigations into the functioning of ICE. I would not be surprised if some do not go to jail. If CoreCivic has made kickbacks, either directly or under the table by buying meme coins or through contributions to build the ballroom or whatever, it will likely be exposed. A last-ditch effort by ICE to shovel money out the door will likely not help anyone avoid accountability.
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