Kristi Noem isn’t playing around. The newly appointed Homeland Security Secretary just sent a loud and clear message to illegal migrants across the country: Register, self-deport, or face the consequences. In a move that’s long overdue, Noem is dusting off the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, a law that has existed for decades but was conveniently ignored by past administrations. Under Trump’s leadership, those days are over.
Noem appeared on Jesse Watters Primetime to lay it out in plain English—illegal migrants who fail to register with the federal government, get fingerprinted, or update their addresses are violating federal law. And this time, there will be penalties. The law itself isn’t new, but the difference is that this administration actually plans to enforce it. In her own words, Noem made it clear: “We’re just going to start enforcing it to make sure that these aliens go back home, and when they want to be an American, then they can come and visit us again.”
Imagine that—America is finally putting its own laws first. Noem’s approach is simple: give illegal migrants the chance to self-register and voluntarily leave before facing fines and criminal charges. This isn’t just about securing the border—it’s about restoring order and fairness to an immigration system that has been left to rot under weak leadership. And let’s be honest, it’s way past time for the federal government to stop looking the other way when millions of people cross into the country illegally, collect benefits, and burden American taxpayers.
The Left, of course, is already in meltdown mode. Cris Ramón, a senior immigration adviser for UnidosUS, whined to the Los Angeles Times that the registry “creates additional confusion for undocumented individuals, increasing the fear that’s gripped them and their families since late January.” Good. That fear isn’t misplaced—it’s the result of an administration that actually enforces the law rather than bending over backward for illegal immigrants. After years of open-border chaos, criminals and freeloaders should be nervous.
Noem made it clear that those who leave voluntarily have a chance to come back legally. This isn’t about cruelty—it’s about law and order. America has always welcomed immigrants, but there’s a right way to do it. The Biden years turned illegal immigration into a free-for-all, where border crossers got priority over actual American citizens. That era is over.
This announcement comes right on the heels of DHS’s new video campaign urging illegal migrants to leave or face deportation with no chance of return. That’s what real deterrence looks like. It’s the kind of hard-nosed approach that voters demanded in 2024 when they put Trump back in the White House. Gone are the days of bureaucrats wringing their hands while illegal migrants flood across the border. This administration is taking action.
Noem, a staunch ally of Trump, is proving she’s not afraid to do what needs to be done. She’s calling out the reality that so many in Washington refuse to acknowledge: America doesn’t have a broken immigration system—it has a broken enforcement system. The laws are there, but politicians have lacked the willpower to use them. Until now.
This is the first step in a much bigger plan to restore the rule of law and send a message to the world: America is a nation of laws, not loopholes. Illegal migrants have a choice—comply and leave on their own terms, or face the full force of an administration that is finally putting Americans first.
