TV host Dr. Phil films as ICE targets migrants in Chicago By Reuters

By Sarah N. Lynch

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The TV host known as “Dr. Phil” joined U.S. immigration enforcement officials during an operation in Chicago on Sunday, defending President Donald Trump’s deportation effort as the crackdown nearing the end of its first week.

Phil McGraw, known as “Dr. Phil” for the eponymous American television series focused on mental health, follows US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials and other federal agents in during the action, according to his X account and two sources familiar with the matter.

McGraw, who spoke at a Trump campaign event in October, said in an X post on Sunday that ICE aims to select 270 “high-value targets”, indicating that it is a targeted operation, and defended the procedure.

“They don’t sweep neighborhoods like people try to explain,” he said.

Trump, a Republican, has taken steps to launch a broad crackdown on immigration after taking office on January 20, sending US troops to the border and empowering immigration agents to take many are not criminals. The Trump administration last week deputized law enforcement agents to several Justice Department agencies to conduct immigration enforcement to supplement ICE’s efforts.

Agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, , Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and US Marshals Service were given the authority, the Trump administration said last week.

In addition to Dr. Phil, Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove announced his trip to see DOJ agents to support immigration enforcement.

“This morning, I had the privilege of observing the brave men and women of the department deploy in lockstep at DHS to respond to a national emergency stemming from four years of failed immigration policy,” said Bove in a statement, adding that deputized agencies, the FBI, and federal prosecutors will all work in the effort.

Senior Justice Department officials are not typically present to observe law enforcement operations in real time, current and former department officials said.

A Justice Department official said the first Chicago arrest Bove observed involved an immigrant living in the US illegally who “killed a 19-year-old woman while driving under the influence.”

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), part of DHS, said it was partnering with the DOJ for “enhanced targeted operations” in Chicago on Sunday aimed at preserving public safety but did not provide more details.

The office of Chicago’s Democratic Mayor Brandon Johnson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.