Chad Wold joins to discuss the Trump administration's immigration policies and the nearly 200,000 undocumented immigrants deported from the United States last year.

Chad Wolf, Executive Vice President of the America First Policy Institute, credited the current administration with significant improvements in border security, including a reported 95% drop in apprehensions and a halt to catch and release policies. Wolf stated that deportations have increased and that recruitment for ICE and Border Patrol positions is rising due to perceived support from the administration.

Additionally, the State Department has introduced a plan for U.S. embassies in the Western Hemisphere to investigate and report on human rights abuses related to mass migration. Wolf argued that mass migration contributes to violence and human trafficking, and emphasized the administration's commitment to holding those responsible for illegal migration accountable.

Nearly 200,000 illegal immigrants deported in 2025

Chad Wolf, Executive Vice President of America First Policy Institute, joins me now. Chad, I got to tell you, I mean, this administration, home run and then some when it comes to securing the border. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, really, really incredible work. If you remember what they were up against, right, after four years of the Biden administration, basically opening the borders up and allowing millions of individuals to come across that border, abusing humanitarian parole. We had the CBP One app. Remember, you could go on your app and basically get a free entry into the country. Having to stop all of that and putting in a lot of the policies, some of which you just mentioned and others, we've seen apprehensions fall by 95%. No longer are releasing individuals into the interior of the country. Catch and release has been stopped by this administration. Fentanyl seizures are down. Deportations are up. I mean, the list goes on and on and on. And so President Trump deserves a lot of credit. His team deserves a lot of credit for what they've been able to do in a very short period of time. You know, Chad, I had a lady call in on my national radio show earlier today. She was so excited that the ladies from Jersey, her new son-in-law is going to become an ICE agent. And that story is being repeated. I have to imagine all across the country, thousands of people signing up. What do you make of the excitement around Border Patrol, ICE, and these government agencies right now? I think what it tells you is that when law enforcement officers know that they'll be able to do their job and they're not going to be hamstrung by the politician or those that are leading them, they're going to sign up to do that job because there's a duty. They have a sense of duty. They're called to this type of work. And so whether it's ICE agents, the recruitment numbers are up or Border Patrol agents for that matter, both numbers are up because they know that President Trump has their back. Unlike under four years under Joe Biden, they were called all sorts of names by both the president and the leadership in his administration. And you just don't want to serve under that scenario, but it's very different now. And I think that's why a lot of those numbers are surging once again. And it's a great point you make. The State Department also unveiling a new plan to tackle the global crisis of mass migration, directing U.S. embassies across the Western Hemisphere to investigate and report on human rights abuses linked to mass migration. This is a huge problem that we've been seeing lately. What do you think about the plan? Yeah, look, I think the Trump team is turning this on its head, right? Because we've been told for years and years and years that mass migration, that the U.S. is a welcoming country and we need to take all of these individuals in. Instead, what we know and what the Trump team knows is that mass migration actually fuels violence. It fuels the human trafficking and it fuels these human rights violations. And so they're absolutely right to say, hey, for those that want to continue to partake in illegal mass migration, we're actually going to start to look in and we're going to hold them accountable because that's where the atrocities come from. It's not necessarily someone who wants to come here for a better job. It's the journey in which and how they get here to the United States that makes it so dangerous and where we see so much carnage and lives lost or lives being wrecked. All right, Chad Wolf, we're going to have to leave it there. Thank you and Happy New Year to you. All right. Happy New Year.

For several years, the French government has explored ways to limit teenagers’ access to social media due to its harmful impact on mental health, and new guidance from the European Commission could now make it easier for France to pass legislation on the matter.

Paris

France proposes social media ban, following Australian model

Israel will enforce a ban on 37 international NGOs in the Gaza Strip, citing failure to meet security and transparency standards.

Jerusalem

Middle East Conflict

Israel says it 'will enforce' ban on 37 NGOs in Gaza

Zohran Mamdani became mayor of New York City just after midnight on Thursday, marking a historic moment with a low-key swearing-in ceremony held deep beneath Manhattan. The Democrat, who at 34 is the city’s youngest mayor in generations, takes office as one of the most closely watched political figures in the U.S.

New York

Mamdani becomes New York City mayor

Dozens of people have been killed and 100 injured, most of them seriously, after a fire tore through a crowded bar during a New Year's Eve party in the upscale ski resort of Crans-Montana, Swiss officials said.

Crans-Montana

Dozens killed, 100 injured in fire in Swiss ski resort bar

President Donald Trump said his administration was removing the National Guard from Chicago, Los Angeles and Portland, but he added in his social media post that federal forces will "come back" if crime rates go up.

Chicago

Trump: National Guard being removed from Chicago, LA and Portland

Finnish police have seized a cargo ship suspected of sabotaging an undersea telecom cable between Helsinki and Estonia on December 31. Authorities say the vessel was sailing from Russia to Israel when it was intercepted in the Gulf of Finland.

Helsinki

Finland seizes Russia-linked ship over suspected cable sabotage

Russia's defense ministry released video footage on Wednesday (December 31) of what it said was a downed drone at a briefing intended to show Ukraine tried this week to attack a presidential residence and challenge Kyiv's denials that such an attack took place.

Moscow

Russia releases video footage to challenge Kyiv over alleged attack

Severe humanitarian needs in Gaza are worsening as dozens of aid groups are forced to halt operations under new Israeli restrictions.
Up to 48 organizations have stopped work, leaving fewer clinics, food distributions and shelters for civilians.

Israel to block dozens of aid groups working in war-battered Gaza

The world has begun saying goodbye to 2025, with South Pacific nations first to welcome 2026.

Council of the City of Sydney

Fireworks light up the globe as nations ring in 2026

CNN, citing sources, reported that the CIA had carried out a drone strike earlier this month on a port facility on the coast of Venezuela. U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. struck a facility where boats accused of carrying drugs "load up."

Caracas

Trump says U.S. strike hit dock in Venezuela

President Trump says the U.S. "knocked out" a "big facility" last week linked to alleged drug boat operations. Unlike previous operations at sea, this strike occurred on Venezuelan territory, though the president did not disclose specific details about the timing, location, or the party responsible for the attack.

Washington

Trump says U.S. launched strike on boat dock inside Venezuela

Tatiana Schlossberg, the granddaughter of President John F. Kennedy and an environmental journalist, has died at the age of 35 following a battle with cancer, the JFK Library Foundation announced Tuesday.

Tatiana Schlossberg, JFK's granddaughter, dies at 35

The United Arab Emirates says it's withdrawing its remaining forces from Yemen. The move comes after Saudi Arabia bombed a port in Yemen, saying it targeted an arms shipment intended for a UAE-backed separatist force.

Al Mukalla

Saudi Arabia bombs port in Yemen

In an overnight strike, the Saudi military hit a Yemeni port saying they were neutralising a weapons shipments arriving from UAE. The UAE has denied the shipment contained weapons and claimed the vehicles were not intended for any groups. Both countries have supported the fighting sides in the over-decade long war in Yemen, but this strike has turned this rivalry into an open dispute.

The UAE denies shipping weapons to Yemen after overnight Saudi strike

The Kremlin said Tuesday it would toughen its negotiating position in talks on ending the war in Ukraine after accusing Kyiv of attacking a Russian presidential residence — an allegation that Kyiv said was baseless and intended to prolong the conflict.

Russia will toughen negotiating stance on war in Ukraine

China fired rockets into waters off northern and southern Taiwan on Tuesday (December 30) and deployed new amphibious assault ships alongside bomber aircraft and destroyers on the second day of its most extensive war games.

Taipei City

China fires rockets towards Taiwan in war games simulating blockade

President Donald Trump on Monday confirmed an alleged drug-related site was targeted during a recent strike, saying, "they load the boats up with drugs, so we hit all the boats and now we hit the area." Trump did not say when the strike happened or exactly where.

U.S. strike hits Venezuelan port facility

The search for Malaysia Airlines flight 370 that went missing in 2014 with 239 people on board is expected to resume Tuesday (December 30). The Malaysian government and a private marine robotics company say they will use advances in technology to aid in the search.

Kuala Lumpur

Search resumes for Malaysia Airlines flight that disappeared in 2014

The two countries have agreed to hold fire, freeze troop movements and allow civilians to return home under a new agreement.

Krong Poi Pet

Thailand-Cambodia ceasefire holds as 72-hour observation period ends

Head of Yemen's presidential council, which is supported by Saudi Arabia, says UAE-backed forces in the country should leave within 24 hours.

Yemen’s presidential council cancels UAE defence deal

U.S. President Donald Trump said the United States could support another major strike on Iran were it to resume rebuilding its ballistic missile or nuclear weapons programs and warned Hamas of severe consequences if it does not disarm.

Florida

Trump warns Iran of possible strike, urges Hamas to disarm

U.S. hit an area in Venezuela where boats are loaded with drugs, Trump says, as Pentagon carries out another deadly strike in the Pacific. This claim follows a series of U.S. strikes on boats in the Eastern Pacific, raising the total number of known strikes to 31 and resulting in over 100 deaths.

Trump claims attack on a dock in Venezuela, strikes kill two in Pacific

The Taiwanese government says it has placed its forces on alert as China intensifies its military presence in the Indo-Pacific Ocean and launches air, navy and rocket drills around the island.

Taiwan's forces on alert as China launches military drills

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is denying Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov’s claim that Ukraine tried to attack President Vladimir Putin's residence in northern Russia.

Kyiv

Ukraine Invasion

Zelenskyy denies Russian claim that Ukraine targeted Putin’s residence

President Trump said after a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Hamas must disarm soon or "there will be hell to pay." He said the next phase of the Gaza peace plan could move forward quickly if Hamas disarms.

Trump warns "hell to pay" if Hamas doesn't disarm

CBC’s Kris Reyes highlights the biggest AI advancements in 2025 along with the continued calls to establish clear boundaries in an effort to prevent misuse.

DeepSeek and the biggest AI advancements in 2025

Russia accused Ukraine on Monday (December 29) of trying to attack President Vladimir Putin's residence in northern Russia, although it provided no evidence to back up an assertion that Kyiv dismissed as baseless and designed to undermine peace negotiations.

Russia claims Ukraine tried to attack Putin residence

Two helicopters collided above Hammonton, New Jersey, and one person has died, officials say. CBS News' Elaine Quijano reports.

Hammonton

Helicopters collide in New Jersey

U.S. President Donald Trump is meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Florida on Monday (December 29) as questions linger about the future of the U.S.-backed ceasefire in Gaza.

Palm Beach

Trump and Netanyahu meet in Florida to discuss Gaza ceasefire

British-Nigerian boxer Anthony Joshua was involved in a road accident on Monday in Makun, Ogun State, south-west Nigeria.

Breakdown