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CHARLESTON - U.S. Sen. Jim Justice offered clarification Wednesday on comments the night before that seemed critical of immigration enforcement sweeps by the administration of President Donald Trump.
In a statement released Wednesday afternoon, Justice said he supported Trump’s immigration agenda, which includes border control and immigration raids across the country.
"Let me be crystal clear: I support President Trump's immigration strategy, full stop," Justice said. "It's not surprising that some are twisting my words to score political points, but there should be no confusion about where I stand."
In comments reported Tuesday by Politico, Justice said the Trump administration should rethink immigration enforcement policies that focus on certain undocumented immigrants.
"Before you know it, you get people that get carried away in their job and whatever it may be, and all of a sudden, then you're dragging people away that have lived on your street corner for 15 years, and I don't know that we need to be doing that stuff," Justice said. "To get better, the first thing you got to do is admit you're doing something wrong. ... And in this situation, with all that's going on and all the stuff, we probably got to step back from it and say, 'Maybe we're doing something wrong here or there,' and then adjust to that."
Justice clarified his remarks from Tuesday, stating that he supported Trump’s overall immigration crackdown while also encouraging Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to focus on those with violent criminal records.
"Our brave ICE officers are doing an incredible job protecting our communities, and they must continue to focus on criminals who are here illegally and putting Americans in danger. Violent criminals, drug traffickers, gang members and others who threaten our communities should be identified, arrested and removed," Justice said Wednesday.
According to reporting by the New York Times, ICE arrests jumped to approximately 51,000 in August, focusing on quieter raids versus the mass enforcement efforts in 2025 that led to nationwide protests.
According to the American Immigration Council, ICE was arresting more than 800 suspected undocumented immigrants per day at its peak in December. Many of the first raids focused on "at-large" arrests, meaning those arrested in specific raids. But at-large arrests have now dropped to the same number of custodial arrests of those immigrants already in local, state or federal custody.
"... Far from being 'the worst of the worst,' the majority had no criminal record; and among those that did, most had only low-level offenses," wrote Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, in an April 17 article. "Two out of every three 'at-large' arrests during the winter were of people with no criminal record and just 17% had any prior criminal conviction. And out of that group, just one-third were classified as the most serious offenders by ICE."
According to the White House, the Trump administration has deported more than 605,000 illegal immigrants, with another 1.9 million "self-deporting" by leaving the country voluntarily.
"What's been accomplished by President Trump in regards to our border and immigration is truly amazing," Justice said. "Cleaning up this mess has been a tremendous accomplishment. ... President Trump has made securing our border and restoring law and order a top priority, and I support that effort. As a senator, I will continue working with the administration and our law enforcement officers to make West Virginia and this country safer."
Steven Allen Adams can be reached at sadams@newsandsentinel.com.