Atlanta under pressure: Federal immigration enforcement called to ramp up

U.S. Rep. Earl “Buddy” Carter (R-GA) sent a letter to the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to request an increased presence in Atlanta. 

Carter cited the state’s ranking in the number of undocumented immigrants as a reason for increased enforcement. 

The Migration Policy Institute released a report in October that found Georgia to be the sixth in the nation for its number of undocumented immigrants, with approximately 479,000 unauthorized immigrants calling the state home in 2023.

“Rising levels of illegal immigrants and increasing threats to public safety in Georgia highlight the urgent need for an enhanced ICE presence in Atlanta,” Carter wrote in the letter. “Every single person who is here illegally has broken the law and must be treated accordingly; anything less invites a culture of not just mass illegal immigration, but mass crime.”

Carter is running for Senate in 2026, a seat that is currently held by Sen. Jon Ossoff.

In response to Carter’s comments, Eduardo Delgado, civic and advocacy coordinator for Migrant Equity Southeast, spoke with WSAV-TV and said the state depends on immigrant workers.

“Georgia is an agricultural state. The agriculture sector would not be operating, to be honest with you, without the hardworking immigrants of Georgia,” Delgado told WSAV-TV. “Every crop that’s grown in this state is tended to by immigrants.”

Before sending the letter to DHS and ICE, Carter spoke with WSAV-TV following the release of the Migration Policy Institute Report.

“Look, if they’re here undocumented or illegally, they’ve already broken the law and they need to follow the law,” Carter said. “We all know that we need some of these workers… but the most important thing here is to make sure that Georgians are safe.”

Although Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens has not released a response to Carter’s letter, he told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in September that he was actively working to avoid a federal law enforcement takeover in Atlanta.

“I make phone calls to the state, I make phone calls to the feds and I let them know that Atlanta is safe,” he said.