President Donald Trump backed an idea to rename U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Monday, in an apparent attempt to hit back at the media, calling it a “great idea.”
The president was resharing a March 25 X post from a journalist and MAGA supporter called Alyssa, in which she said, “I want Trump to change ICE to NICE (National Immigration and Customs Enforcement) so the media has to say NICE agents all day everyday.”
Trump posted his response to Truth Social just after midnight on Monday, saying, “GREAT IDEA!!! DO IT. President DJT.”
While Trump has previously tried to change department and agency names, such as renaming the Department of Defense to the Department of War, he technically does not have the power to do so; Congress must approve such a change.
Newsweek reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment via email on Monday morning.
Why It Matters
ICE has been at the center of news stories surrounding the Trump administration’s heightened immigration enforcement efforts. The agency is responsible for enforcing immigration laws within the U.S., and its agents have been empowered over the past 15 months to carry out widespread enforcement operations across the country, often leading to clashes with protesters, which in some cases have turned fatal.
Democrats have sought to introduce stricter limits and oversight over ICE and its sister agency, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), including during the ongoing funding debate, which has left DHS partially shut down.
What To Know
The proposal on X, originally posted on March 25, immediately saw an uptick in responses following the president’s post on Monday.
Conservative commentator Nick Sortor publicly supported the change, telling Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin on X, “100% agree! Make it happen @SecMullinsDHS!”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt also shared a news article about Trump’s support for the proposal but offered no further commentary on the idea.
There was some criticism of the proposal, with Democrat commentator Harry Sisson posting on X, “Trump is awake and he’s now demanding that ICE be renamed to NICE so the media has to say ‘NICE agents’ everyday. This is what the president is focused on. Very weird stuff.”
Trump’s Approval Rating on Immigration Sliding
Whether ICE keeps its current name or not, the public’s view of the agency may not shift significantly, given months of scrutiny over the actions of federal agents.
Overall, voters remained deeply divided along party lines over immigration enforcement, with Politico noting April 18 that half of Americans felt Trump’s mass deportation campaign was too aggressive, despite efforts by the White House to tone down the rhetoric around ICE activity in the wake of Renee Good and Alex Pretti’s deaths in Minneapolis in January.
Recent polling showed Trump’s immigration policies remain deeply unpopular among Hispanic adults, with only about one‑quarter approving of his approach, down from 36 percent at the start of his term.
Another survey from Navigator Research released last week showed voters regretting their support for Trump on key issues, including immigration.
“Everything that’s been enacted, again, the rhetoric, all these ICE escapades and everything like that, it’s rough, and I just don’t think he’s doing anything about it or helping at all,” one participant in a focus group told Navigator.
Could Trump Rebrand ICE?
Agency name changes typically require legislation to amend statutory authorities, but Trump has sought to circumvent those longstanding rules during his second term, rebranding the Department of Defense as the Department of War—although that move has been challenged in the courts—and putting his name on the Kennedy Center.
While the president backed the ICE rebrand on social media, it remains to be seen whether he will move forward with an order to put the “N” in front of “ICE,” with support likely needed from lawmakers to make it official.
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