Donald Trump has reversed an order forcing ICE agents to halt vehicle stops targeting undocumented migrants following deadly shootings in Maine and Texas. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin ordered ICE officers on Tuesday to 'immediately' halt all vehicle stops after the deaths of two migrant drivers in less than a week. But Trump has now intervened, praising ICE officers and insisting the agency cannot afford to give up its traffic stop powers. 'Once we do, we are playing right into the criminal's hands,' Trump said in a Truth Social post on Wednesday. Trump's rebuke leaves Mullin dangerously exposed just months after the same ICE bloodshed helped end his predecessor Kristi Noem's Cabinet career. Noem was fired by Trump back in March following chaotic immigration enforcement operations in Minneapolis that led to the deaths of two unarmed Americans and intense public backlash against the administration. The latest ICE shootings in Maine and Texas have sparked public outcry from Democrats. Mullin gave the directive after speaking with Maine Republican Senator Susan Collins who urged him to 'cease all non-urgent vehicle stops.'

In Houston, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old father of three, was shot dead by an ICE agent on July 7 as he drove to work. Six days later in Biddeford, Maine, agents staking out a home opened fire on a car they say tried to flee, killing Joan Sebastian Durán Guerrero, a 26-year-old Colombian national. The agent who reportedly shot Guerrero was a new recruit who joined the agency last year, according to the Atlantic. Neither man was the target of the operation that killed him, and the agents involved in both shootings were not wearing body cameras.

Homeland Security has claimed both drivers tried to run over law enforcement, but has yet to produce evidence backing up those accounts. Within hours of Monday's shooting, several hundred protesters came out across Maine with vigils spreading to Portland and Lewiston. Demonstrators also lined up outside Collins' office demanding answers. Protesters could be seen holding anti-ICE signs while chanting 'ICE out' on Monday evening. In Houston, where thousands have taken to the streets since Araujo's death, demonstrators rallied outside City Hall on Tuesday and packed a city council meeting to demand an investigation.

It is unclear if DHS will immediately reverse Mullin's directive following Trump's latest comments. Border czar Tom Homan on Tuesday said that ICE's pause on car stops was only temporary and wouldn't bring down the number of arrests. 'I wouldn't even call this a bump in the road — this is going to be a short-term review, so ICE feels comfortable that their agents are safe, they're doing the right thing and get back to doing what they do best,' he told Fox News. The Daily Mail has contacted Homeland Security for comment.