SAVANNAH, Ga. () — Local and state leaders are reacting to the recent Immigration Control and Enforcement (ICE) raids and the protests against them.
As reported by the White House, ICE officers have detained over 100,000 individuals in less than five months since President Donald Trump assumed office, compared to 113,000 arrests during the entire 2024 fiscal year.
Detentions occurred in Bulloch County just last Friday. Bryan County Republican Party Chairman Jordan Given and Savannah Mayor Van Johnson both indicated this is what Republicans voted for, although they have differing opinions on whether the enforcement is beneficial.
“I think when someone shows you who they are, you believe them. I think President Trump made it very clear what his priorities were,” Johnson stated. “Elections have consequences.”
“We’ve got to maintain a level of lawfulness in our country,” Given said. “We support ICE. We support our border security, national safety and the rule of law. We proudly defend and support the actions that our president and the federal government are taking to secure our communities.”
Protests continue across the nation, even locally in Georgia and South Carolina. Both attorney generals spoke out against violence this week.
“Let me be clear: if you attack law enforcement, destroy public or private property, or endanger lives in our state, you will be arrested, charged, and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson said.
“In this country, you have a right to peacefully protest. You do not have a right to right to loot or to punch men and women in uniform,” Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr said in a post on X.
A Bluffton protest will be in front of the Beaufort County Government Building starting at 4 p.m. Saturday. There are rallies at noon in Beaufort and Hilton Head as well. The Savannah event begins at 11 a.m. at Thomas Square Park.
