President Trump’s decisive enforcement of existing immigration laws was called the most significant campaign promise fulfilled in 2025 by conservative commentator Scott Jennings on ABC’s This Week Sunday program.
Jennings, host on the Salem Radio Network and supporter of President Trump’s immigration strategy, emphasized that the administration’s focus on deportations and enforcement marks a historic shift from the previous administration’s practices. He highlighted the sheer scale of removals and self-deportations as evidence of Trump’s commitment to securing the nation’s borders.
During the interview with guest host Jonathan Karl, Jennings pointed out that 2.5 million illegal immigrants have left the country under Trump’s enforcement measures in 2025. A remarkable portion of that total — roughly 1.9 million — were self-deported, choosing to leave after the federal government made clear that illegal presence in the United States would not be tolerated.
Jennings criticized the lack of new immigration statutes under the current administration, noting that Trump has instead aggressively applied existing law. “We haven’t passed any new immigration laws since Donald Trump became the president,” he stated. “We are just enforcing the laws we have, something the previous administration would not do.”
The Trump administration touted consistent progress in border enforcement by mid-December, reporting that no illegal immigrants had been released into the United States for seven straight months,in stark contrast with prior policies that saw hundreds of thousands released into the country.
Department of Homeland Security figures show that many migrants opted for voluntary departure through tools like the CBP Home app, reflecting both a strategic policy shift and the impact of sustained enforcement. Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin noted that illegal entrants were now receiving a clear message: “They know if they don’t, we will find them, we will arrest them, and they will never return.”
Conservative media and commentators have framed Trump’s immigration policy as a fulfillment of long-standing Republican promises to secure the border and uphold the rule of law. By focusing enforcement resources and administrative actions on individuals living in the country illegally, the administration has underscored its commitment to sovereignty, public safety, and accountability.
While legal challenges and public debate continue, voices like Jennings’ argue that rigorous enforcement of immigration law aligns with conservative principles of national security and constitutional governance.
