Story perspectives

DOJ Overhauls Immigration Judges to Accelerate Deportations

5/7/2026

Summary

Story summary

Justice Department will replace immigration judges deemed slow to cut 3.7 million-case backlog, with Attorney General Todd Blanche saying aims to speed deportations.
Removal orders rose to nearly 500,000 2025 as asylum grants fell to 7 percent, per Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse.
Since U.S. President Donald Trump returned, administration dismissed 100 and appointed 143 judges, with Justice Department saying it is using denaturalization while American Immigration Lawyers Association warning protections are dismantled.

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Story summary

Justice Department will replace immigration judges deemed slow to cut 3.7 million-case backlog, with Attorney General Todd Blanche saying aims to speed deportations.
Removal orders rose to nearly 500,000 2025 as asylum grants fell to 7 percent, per Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse.
Since U.S. President Donald Trump returned, administration dismissed 100 and appointed 143 judges, with Justice Department saying it is using denaturalization while American Immigration Lawyers Association warning protections are dismantled.