In a significant move to reduce the size of the federal government, the Trump administration dismissed 20 immigration judges on Friday without explanation, according to a union official.
Matthew Biggs, president of the International Federation of Professional & Technical Engineers (IFPTE), which represents federal workers, confirmed that 13 immigration judges who had not yet been sworn in, as well as five assistant chief immigration judges, were let go. Additionally, two other judges were dismissed in the past week under similar circumstances. The reasons for the firings remain unclear, and it is uncertain whether the positions will be replaced.
Immigration courts are currently overwhelmed, with more than 3.7 million cases pending, according to Syracuse University’s Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse. Asylum cases, in particular, often take years to be resolved. There is bipartisan support for increasing the number of judges and staff to address the backlog, although the first Trump administration previously pressured some judges to expedite case decisions.
Earlier in the Trump administration, five senior court officials were replaced, including acting director Mary Cheng. Sirce Owen, the current head of the agency and a former appellate immigration judge, has implemented numerous changes, many of which reverse policies introduced under the Biden administration.
In another move that sparked controversy, last month the Justice Department cut funding for non-governmental organizations that provided critical information and guidance to individuals facing deportation, only to reinstate the funds after a coalition of nonprofit groups filed a federal lawsuit.
The recent firings reflect two key priorities of the Trump administration: reducing government size and prioritizing mass deportations. On Thursday, the administration ordered agencies to lay off nearly all probationary employees who had not yet secured civil service protection, potentially impacting hundreds of thousands of workers.
Biggs, the union official, questioned whether the firings were part of an effort to influence immigration policy, describing them as indicative of a broader campaign targeting the federal workforce. “They’re treating these people as if they’re not human beings,” he said. “It’s bad all around.”
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