Sen. Jim Justice (R-WV) told Politico that ICE’s practice of ranging into rural areas to arrest illegal migrants may need to change, pointing to the strain it’s putting on ranchers who rely on that labor.
“It is a very difficult balancing act from the standpoint of our ranchers,” Justice said. “All of a sudden, they’re understaffed.”
Justice went further, suggesting ICE itself might be at fault for how it’s carrying out enforcement in these communities.
“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,” the senator said.
He added: “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.”
Agriculture Pushes Back Nationwide
Justice isn’t alone. Agricultural groups in Kansas, Texas, and Oklahoma have criticized ICE’s rural raids, with cattle industry organizations issuing a joint statement warning of a “massive chilling effect on the legal, documented, skilled workers that put beef on the table and keep the cattle supply chain moving.”
Dairy industry representatives in Idaho have raised similar concerns about losing cheap labor, according to Oregon Public Broadcasting.
That pressure from Republican-aligned industries may explain reports that the Department of Homeland Security issued a directive to pull back on arresting migrants without criminal records, focusing instead on those who’ve broken other laws. DHS has since pushed back hard on that characterization, calling reports of any stand-down order “false” and stating that “no one is off the table” for deportation if they’re in the country illegally.
Wages Are Rising Without Cheap Labor
While ranchers complain about labor shortages, wages in construction and other sectors hit by the immigration crackdown are climbing. A December 2025 report from The Birmingham Group described “the construction industry’s most dramatic compensation transformation in decades,” with job-opening-to-candidate ratios exceeding 3:1 in some markets and employers competing hard on pay.
Vice President JD Vance made the administration’s position plain back in May: “What we believe in this White House is what we need more and more of is high wages for American workers and investing in our own people.” He criticized the notion, popular “all over the West,” that prosperity comes from importing “millions and millions of unvetted people” into American neighborhoods, and blamed “Wall Street bankers, corporate lobbyists, and government officials” for pushing cheap labor over higher wages.
Justice Reverses Course
After his Politico comments drew attention, Justice issued a statement Wednesday reaffirming full support for President Trump’s immigration policy.
“Let me be crystal clear: I support President Trump’s immigration strategy, full stop. It’s not surprising that some are twisting my words to score political points, but there should be no confusion about where I stand,” Justice said.
He praised ICE for “doing an incredible job protecting our communities” and said he would keep working with the administration and law enforcement.
“West Virginians expect us to enforce the law, protect our communities, and keep dangerous criminals off our streets. That is exactly what I support,” Justice concluded.
