10
Loading video...
By Dan Gooding and Gabe Whisnant
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said Tuesday that there will be "no amnesty" for undocumented immigrant farmworkers when it comes to mass deportations.
Speaking at a briefing on United States farmland security, which included a plan to prevent foreign countries from owning farms, Rollins said she knew there had been "a lot of noise" around migrant farm labor in recent days, and that President Donald Trump was clear in his views.
"There will be no amnesty," she said. "The mass deportations continue, but in a strategic and intentional way as we move the workforce toward more automation and toward a 100 percent American workforce."
Read More on Politics
Rollins said that with 34 million able-bodied people on Medicaid, "we should be able to do [this] fairly quickly."
Why It Matters
The White House has given mixed messages on farm laborers in recent weeks, with Trump twice saying he understood concerns from farmers around the potential loss of thousands of migrant workers.
Industry representatives and policy analysts have been warning since mid-2024 that mass deportations could drastically disrupt the U.S. farming industry.
What To Know
Rollins, speaking alongside other Trump Cabinet members about farm security and protecting them from foreign involvement, was asked about concerns regarding immigrant farm workers and the industry's ability to continue without them.
The secretary reiterated that there would be no amnesty for those in the U.S. illegally, whether they worked on farms or not, but that there was understanding that removals needed to be carried out strategically to avoid disrupting the country's food supply.
...
While Rollins said she had spoken with Trump at least twice on this issue. The president had said on June 20 that he wanted to find a solution for "reputable farmers" so that they could take responsibility for the immigrant workers in their charge.
So far, a new policy has not been announced, but Republican Representative Andy Harris has called for expanding visas to provide a more secure workforce.
Recent reports have suggested crops across the country have been left to rot, with migrant workers either detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or afraid to head to work because of potential arrest.
What People Are Saying
Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer, speaking during Tuesday's Cabinet meeting: "What the Department of Labor is doing is focusing on what the law entails now, being more modernized, more streamlining, to work through the H programs. We're going to have a concierge approach to that. We have developed a new office to answer the need of our farmers and ranchers and producers, and not to displace the American worker."
President Donald Trump, speaking on June 20: "We're looking at doing something where in the case of good, reputable farmers, they can take responsibility for the people that they hire. Because we can't put the farms out of business...I never want to hurt our farmers. And we can't hurt the people who are not criminals. They keep up happy and healthy and fat."
Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, on X (formerly Twitter): "The Trump admin's new talking point on the Big Beautiful Bill: we're going to deport all the farm laborers and make people on Medicaid work in the fields to earn their health insurance."
What Happens Next
Rollins said more announcements would come soon from the Department of Labor on the temporary worker visa program, which enables immigrants to work on farms across the U.S.
Update 7/8/25, 11:59 a.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
Update 7/8/25, 1:16 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines