Poll after poll over the last several weeks tell a clear and consistent story: voters are outraged by what they have seen from the Trump administration’s immigration agenda. Public disapproval intensified substantially after the killings and violence in Minneapolis, and Americans do not support sending additional funding to ICE or DHS given these agencies’ already supercharged budgets and actions.

The reason is straightforward. DHS is already operating with historic and unprecedented levels of funding, and that funding is driving a dramatic expansion of enforcement operations resulting in the separation of families, destabilization of communities, and generating widespread public backlash. With approximately $150 billions of dollars allocated to CBP and ICE still unspent, voters believe Congress should not add more fuel to the fire.

These concerns came into sharper focus as Senate Democrats blocked additional DHS funding last week. A series of national polls show sharp resistance to the administration’s approach and clear support for Democrats’ decision not to provide additional funding to ICE and CBP. 

• PBS/Marist/NPR finds nearly two-thirds of Americans believe ICE’s actions have gone too far. 
• Reuters finds just 38 percent approve of Trump’s handling of immigration, a new record low. 
• AP-NORC reports only about 4 in 10 Americans approve of his immigration performance, while roughly 6 in 10 say he has gone too far in deploying federal immigration agents in major U.S. cities.
• Senate Majority PAC found that 57% disapprove of the policies and actions of the Trump administration in dealing with immigration and deportations, including 44% who strongly disapprove. 
• GBAO shows that when voters learn ICE has already received tens of billions in new funding, support for giving the agency more drops to roughly one-third. Moreover, 60% of voters prefer to redirect the funds to restore Medicaid cuts.

The trend that began in the spring has both accelerated and solidified. When voters are exposed and see their neighbors and elected officials fighting back against the most harmful excesses of the administration’s efforts—from wrongful disappearances to CECOT to aggressive operations in Los Angeles, Chicago, and now Minneapolis—overall approval drops sharply.

This is not a one-week shift. Since June, President Trump’s approval on immigration has steadily declined, reaching a record low. Further, independents sharply disapproved of ICE and CBP's aggressive actions.

Now, new data is bringing to light just how overfunded DHS is, even without Congress sending the agency another dollar.

• If Congress gives DHS additional appropriations, the Trump administration will have roughly a quarter of a trillion dollars to spend on immigration enforcement for the remainder of the president’s second term.
• ICE is already the most heavily funded federal law enforcement body in the world, with $75 billion of new funding from last year’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBA) on top of its roughly $10 billion annual budget sitting in its coffers. 
• The reconciliation bill provided DHS with a massive $191 billion in spending on top its annual appropriations—equivalent to almost two years of funding for the whole agency. It still retains roughly $150 billion in unspent funds from OBBBA, enough to fund the entire department into the fourth quarter of 2027. 
• Much of this money is only now starting to flow, turbocharging an already out-of-control system with 300% to 500% annual increases in interior enforcement and pushing the U.S. immigration enforcement budget to levels comparable to the world’s sixth-largest military.

The public sees what is happening and does not believe an agency that has already received historic, pre-funded increases needs more money. Public opinion is clear: Democrats in Congress should continue to fight back against this administration's deeply unpopular immigration actions and not provide additional funding to an already supercharged, deeply unpopular ICE and CBP.

For media inquiries regarding this polling, the DHS funding fight, and more, please contact press@fwd.us.