BONUS POD: What the Numbers Show: Criminal Convictions Dominate ICE Arrests

Summary

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Podcast Summary: Verdict with Ted Cruz

BONUS POD: What the Numbers Show — Criminal Convictions Dominate ICE Arrests

Date: March 12, 2026
Hosts: Ben Ferguson
Duration: ~16 minutes

Episode Overview

This special episode of "Verdict with Ted Cruz" focuses on newly released data regarding immigration enforcement and ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) arrest statistics from President Trump's administration. Host Ben Ferguson analyzes the numbers, challenges mainstream media coverage, and discusses the intersection of border security, criminal convictions among illegal immigrants, terrorism concerns, and child safety.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. ICE Arrests Surge After Trump Takes Office

• In President Trump's first 50 days back in office, federal agents arrested over 32,000 illegal immigrants.
• Nearly 70% of those arrested already had criminal convictions or were facing charges in the U.S.
  • “These weren't random people being picked up. These were criminals, many of them violent, and some of them on the terrorist watch list.” (Ben Ferguson, 05:16)

Notable Figures:

• 14,000+ arrested had prior criminal convictions in the U.S.
• 10,000+ were facing pending criminal charges in the U.S.

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2. National Security and Terror Watch List Concerns

• The episode draws a connection between illegal immigration and national security threats, particularly terrorism.
  • “There are many people that came across our southern border … who were, in fact, on the terrorist watch list.” (Ben Ferguson, 04:06)
• In those first 50 days:
  • 1,155 suspected gang members arrested
  • 44 foreign fugitives wanted in other countries arrested
  • 29 individuals flagged as suspected terrorists apprehended

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3. Child Safety and Sex Crime Arrests

• Focused Operations: ICE targeted illegal immigrants accused or convicted of sex crimes involving minors.

  • Houston, TX region: 214 child sex crime offenders arrested in first six months; 414 arrested in Trump’s first year back.

• Arrests in Houston during Trump’s first year nearly doubled the final year of Biden’s term.

  • “Parents can sleep a little bit better knowing those individuals are no longer a threat to their family.” (Ben Ferguson quoting ICE field director, 10:16)

• Details include crimes such as sexual assault, molestation, exploitation, and possession of child pornography.

• Specific case examples include:

  • Alleged rape of an autistic 14-year-old girl in California by an illegal alien (08:56)
  • Repeat sex offender apprehended near Eagle Pass, TX (09:42)

• Total Crimes Accounted:

  • 761 child sex offenses
  • 525 other criminal offenses (including homicide, robbery)

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4. Mainstream Media Critique

• The host criticizes the “mainstream media” for allegedly ignoring these statistics and not informing the public.
  • “Why is the media not telling you this story? This isn't nationwide, this is in one city.” (Ben Ferguson, 07:35)
  • Asserts the media is more focused on sleeper cells and terrorism, not the criminal background of those arrested at the border.

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5. Political Implications and Polling Data

• New CNN polling shows Republicans now enjoy a larger trust advantage over Democrats on immigration and border security issues.

  • “In 2018, Democrats had an edge of about 6 points. … Republicans are the ones who actually have an edge on immigration.” (CNN Analyst, 13:16)
  • “Republicans up by 15 points. … Democrats running on immigration may actually be to the Republicans' advantage.” (CNN Analyst, 14:00)

• The political argument is that Democrats have lost ground due to the perception of a weaker stance on border security and negative ramifications from “open borders.”

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6. Overall Message

• The podcast repeatedly stresses that enforcement targets “the most dangerous offenders,” not ordinary migrants.
  • “They are literally removing the most dangerous offenders first.” (Ben Ferguson, 14:37)
• Argues that the scale and focus of ICE’s operations under Trump directly support his campaign promises of law, order, and security.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Immediate Enforcement Surge:

  • “32,000 arrests in just the first 50 days. … Nearly 70% of those arrests already had criminal convictions or were facing criminal charges.” (Ben Ferguson, 05:01)

• On Crimes Against Children:

  • “414 illegal alien child sex offenders were arrested in the Houston area alone during President Trump's first year in office.” (Ben Ferguson, 07:14)

• ICE Statement Highlight:

  • “The brave men and women of ICE were quietly going about their business to arrest and remove more than 400 dangerous child predators from our local community in Houston.” (Quoting ICE Acting Field Director, 10:09)

• On Media Coverage:

  • “Why is the media not telling you this story? This isn't nationwide, this is in one city.” (Ben Ferguson, 07:35)

• Regarding Polling:

  • “They think Democrats will do a worse job on immigration than Republicans.” (CNN Analyst, 13:50)

• On Enforcement Strategy:

  • “Federal authorities say immigration enforcement teams are now targeting violent offenders, gang members, terrorists, repeat border crossers, human traffickers, sex traffickers and child predators…” (Ben Ferguson, 15:04)

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Important Segment Timestamps

• ICE Arrest Data & Criminal Convictions: 04:47–07:01
• Child Sex Crime Statistics in Houston: 07:01–10:16
• ICE Acting Field Director Statement: 10:09
• Media Criticism & National Security Angle: 10:16–12:45
• CNN Polling Segment: 13:00–14:32
• Summary & Strategic Argument: 14:32–16:08

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This episode delivers a pointed, data-driven case for the Trump Administration’s enforcement-focused immigration strategy, emphasizing criminal arrests, child safety, and political consequences. The tone is urgent and critical of mainstream media, insisting that the scope and severity of criminality among those arrested is broadly underreported and politically significant.

Transcript

[Ben Ferguson]

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[Unknown Male Guest or Commentator]

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[Ben Ferguson]

You're listening to the 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson.

Good Thursday morning. It's nice to have you with us on the 47 Morning Update and we've got a very big story for you. We now have data from the first year of President Trump's time in office when it comes to illegal immigrants and who has actually been arrested. We also now know that there was quite a few on the terrorist watch list the president has been able to

[Patriot Mobile Advertiser or Spokesperson]

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[Ben Ferguson]

This is. There's new concerns about sleeper cells in the US that have been activated because of the war in Iraq.

[Patriot Mobile Advertiser or Spokesperson]

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[Ben Ferguson]

It's the 47 Morning Update and it starts right now.

Story number one.

I want to start with a story that the mainstream media doesn't want to spend a lot of time talking about because it's completely destroys the narrative that they pushed for years about border enforcement. When Donald Trump ran for office again, he made a very clear promise to The American people secure the border and remove the most dangerous criminals who entered this country illegally. Now, let's be clear. This is a story right now that matters when it comes to national security. We all know about the real concerns over sleeper cells, terrorists that came in across our southern border that have been activated because of what we are doing in Iran and in the Middle east in general. That is a reason why this story of immigration is now coming back to be a much bigger story than just people running across the border from Latin American countries. There are many people that came across our southern border that was wide open under the Biden administration who were, in fact, on the terrorist watch list. How do we know that? Because our own government, including during the time that Joe Biden was present, said it was actually happening more than any of us could have imagined that men and women were coming across the southern border, and many of them were on the terrorist watch list. Now, when Trump ran for office, he said, I promise to the American people, I will secure that border. And not only has he done it, but he's done it in the way that many Americans say was a very humane way of doing it. Now, he didn't just talk about securing the border as many others have done in the past. He literally did it. And now that promise is being backed up with hard numbers. According to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Homeland Security, enforcement operations surged almost immediately after President Trump took office. Again. In the first 50 days alone, we now know that federal agents arrested more than 32,000 illegal immigrants in nationwide enforcement operations. Let me repeat that. 32,000 arrests in just the first 50 days. And here's the part that the media won't talk about at all. Nearly 70% of those arrests already had criminal convictions or were facing criminal charges. These weren't random people being picked up. These were criminals, many of them violent, and some of them on the terrorist watch list. Now, out of those arrests, we also have learned now that more than 14,000 of them were illegal immigrants already convicted of crimes not in other countries, but crimes in the United States of America. Another 10,000 were facing pending criminal charges not in other countries, but in the United States of America. And then when you dig deeper into these numbers that we now are seeing, it gets even more shocking. Federal agents were now being told arrested 1155 suspected gang members in the first 50 days, 44 foreign fugitives wanted in other countries, 29 individuals flagged as suspected terrorists. Yes, I'm going to give you that number again. In the first 50 days that Donald Trump was back in office. 29 individuals were flagged as suspected terrorists. That is what the Democrats led into this country with open borders, and they knew it. Now, the story gets even more disturbing when you look specifically at crimes against children. Because one of the top priorities of these operations under Trump's leadership have been tracking down illegal immigrants who are accused or convicted of sexual crimes involving minors. For example, in just the Houston, Texas region alone, ice reported arresting 214 illegal immigrants charged with or convicted of child sex crimes in the first six months of the Trump administration. That is 214 child predators in one single region. And officials say the number has already surpassed the total arrests of those crimes during the entire previous year when Joe Biden was in charge. Now, these cases included crimes like sexual assault of a child, child molestation, sexual exploitation of minors, possession of child pornography. And now we've gotten the newest numbers to add to that base. We now know from ICE that 414 illegal alien child sex offenders were arrested in the Houston area alone during President Trump's first year in office. Why is the media not telling you this story? This isn't nationwide, this is in one city. The headline from the local paper reads this way. More than 400 criminal legal aliens have been charged with or convicted of child sex crimes have been arrested in Houston, Texas. And officials stated parents can sleep a little bit better knowing those individuals are no longer a threat to their family. Now, these are the same people the Democrats want you to feel sorry for. ICE announced on Monday that the enforcement and removal operations in Houston not only netted the hundred and. No, wait, I'm sorry. The 414 illegals during President Trump's first year back in office. But officials said the number almost doubled that of predators arrested during the final year of Joe Biden's administration. As a group, the arrested criminal legal aliens accounted for 761 child sex offenses and 525 other criminal offenses were ranging from homicide to robbery. The announcement states ICE then listed some of the arrestees who came from countries such as Honduras, Mexico, El Salvador, Colombia and the United Kingdom. Now, these are the crimes that have been committed, and some of them are absolutely heinous. Illegal aliens have been accused of or convicted of committing crimes against children in the United States of America at extremely young ages. One report in January was that an illegal alien was accused of raping a 14 year old girl with autism in the sanctuary state of California, for example. The following month, an illegal alien fugitive was charged with possession of child sexual abuse material, commonly known as child pornography. In another case, Texas Highway Patrol troopers on horseback tracked and arrested an illegal alien on a remote border ranch in Maverick county on New Year's Day. The troopers closed in on their target just outside of Eagle Pass, Texas. Shortly before noon, troopers identified the man as a previously deported illegal alien, a convicted sex offender with multiple convictions for child related sexual crimes. ICE has also arrested 1,505 illegal aliens in November, including gang members, child rapists and foreign fugitives, the outlet also reported. And there's also, yes, more on the terrorist watch list now regarding the 414 illegal aliens convicted of or charged with child sex crimes who were caught in Houston alone. ICE Enforcement Removal Operations acting field Director said this While elected officials and media pundits across the country were zealously trying to manipulate the American public with fake news stories about ICE public safety missions, the brave men and women of ICE were quietly going about their business to arrest and remove more than 400 dangerous child predators from our local community in Houston. Thanks to their tireless efforts, parents across Southeast Texas can sleep a little bit better tonight knowing that these pedophiles and child rapists are no longer a threat to their children. Which brings us back to the big part of the conversation. Why is the media not covering this? And why is it that the media, which is now obsessed with sleeper cells in the country, even new warnings of possible attacks in California, for example, by these sleeper cells, why are they not telling you about how many people on the terrorist watch list have been caught? How many of them came across the border that we know are in this country illegally and that the Biden administration knew for a fact that the open border policy was allowing for terrorists to come into America. Many of them may be in the sleeper cells that so many are now concerned about. This is exactly why I wanted to spend the time talking to you about it right now. Not only is the border a national security issue, but it's also a national security issue, not just from a terrorism perspective, but from a child safety perspective. There are so many people that came across our border, and the former administration and the Democratic Party knew that there were really bad people that were coming across and they deliberately chose to allow those people across while flooding this country with tens of millions of illegal immigrants. Why did they do it? Because they want to fundamentally change this country. They want to change the fabric of this country, the values of this country, just like we are witnessing right now in Europe and other nations around the world. That is the plan of the Democratic Party. Now the President of the United States of America has one thing that is really working to his advantage. There is new CNN polling that is out right now that says today that Dems are pulling worse on immigration than they did during Trump's first term in office. Which party do you trust more on immigration? Take a listen to this from CNN's own reporting.

[CNN Reporter or Political Analyst]

I think it's so important to note, after all the events in Los Angeles, after all the events in Minneapolis, after all the events of the last year on immigration, can Democrats actually take advantage on this issue? And a look at the polling suggests actually no. They're in a worse position, in a worse position than they were at this point during Donald Trump's first term. Take a look here. Trust which party more in immigration. In 2018, Democrats had an edge of about 6 points. You come over to this side of the screen now. Look at that. Republicans are the ones who actually have an edge on immigration. So this whole idea that Democrats are going to be able to take advantage of the immigration group of the immigration issue actually doesn't bear itself out in the polling. Despite everything that's been going on. In fact, Democrats are in worse position than they were during Donald Trump's first term.

[Unknown Male Guest or Commentator]

Yeah, maybe they don't like what Donald Trump, the president, is doing, but they

[CNN Reporter or Political Analyst]

don't think Democrats will do a better job. Correct. They think Democrats will do a worse job on immigration than Republicans. All right, what about border security in general? Okay, border security in general. So this is immigration at large. What about border security? Look at this. Look at these numbers. Hello, party trusted more in border security. Again, at this point, Trump's terms. Look at this. In 2018, Republicans had a 13 point advantage. If anything, the advantage is a little bit larger now. Republicans up by 15 points. So when you put it all together, you put immigration with border security and the idea that Democrats will be able to take the ball and run away on it. The polling data suggests. No, no, no. This is actually an issue that Republicans should be more comfortable running on than Democrats. Democrats running on immigration may actually be to the Republicans advantage. What about.

[Ben Ferguson]

So you listen to CNN's own reporting now, and now you realize that the Dems are pulling worse on immigration than they did during Trump's first term. Why is that? Because of this. Nationwide, immigration officials say roughly 70% of all ICE arrests now involve illegal immigrants who have already committed crimes in the United States of America. That means the focus of these operations is very clear. They are literally removing the most dangerous offenders first. And when you look at the broader enforcement picture under President Trump, the scale of the crackdown becomes even clearer. Federal authorities say immigration enforcement teams are now targeting violent offenders, gang members, terrorists, repeat border crossers, human traffickers, sex traffickers and child predators, all part of what the DHS calls a strategy to remove the worst of the worst. So even as Democrats claim that the Republicans and Trump and law enforcement just rounding up random sweet people, that is a lie. More than 70% of ICE arrests now involve illegal immigrants who have already committed crimes in the United States of America. President Trump campaigned on restoring law and order at the border and according to federal law enforcement statistics, tens of thousands of arrests later, including hundreds of predators targeting children and people on the terrorist watch list. The Trump administration says that promise is now becoming a reality.

Thank you for listening to the 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson. Please make sure you hit subscribe wherever you're listening to this podcast right now. And for more in depth news, also subscribe to the Ben Ferguson Podcast and we will see you back here tomorrow.