An officer with the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement expressed his gratitude for his job when confronted by a protester.
Protesters were recording a masked ICE officer when he ordered them to “stay back.” Then the protesters peppered him with questions.
AMERICA 250 TO INCLUDE ‘GREAT AMERICAN STATE FAIR’ AND UFC FIGHT AT HISTORIC DC VENUES
“You should be ashamed of yourself, man,” one protester tells the officer.
“He is,” another protester pipes in.
“I love my job. I can’t believe I get paid for this,” the officer responds. “I’d do this for free.”
“Really?” one protester said, laughing.
Another protester shouts out that her salary is $200,000. She said she was a physician’s assistant.
“How long did you go to school for that?” the officer asked the self-reporting PA.
MARGO MARTIN PRAISED FOR KEY ROLE IN TRUMP SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE
“Over seven years,” the protester said.
“I went to high school, and I make 200k,” the officer said before walking away. The video ends shortly after.
The official ICE account complimented the officer, calling him a “patriot” in response to the video on X. Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA) echoed the agency in an X post of his own.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk reposted the video on X with the caption “based.” Musk’s repost has been seen over 19 million times.
At the start of the year, ICE reported it had 12,000 new agents and officers. The agency initially had a goal of 10,000 new hires and received over 220,000 applications.
MINNEAPOLIS MAYOR DOES NOT SUPPORT ABOLISHING ICE AFTER DEADLY SHOOTING
The job has also proved to be dangerous. The Department of Homeland Security reported assaults against ICE officers surged by 1,153% in 11 months. Additionally, the number of death threats made against ICE officers increased by 8,000%, according to the Center Square.
ICE officers are often masked, as their identities become public targets. Protesters have also engaged in ICE Watch trainings to thwart ICE operations.
