ICE Arrests of Cubans Skyrocket Under Trump as Green Cards Plummet, Cato Study Finds

A Cato Institute analysis cited by the Miami Herald finds the Trump administration has “nearly ended green card approvals for Cubans” while sharply escalating ICE arrests of the same population. USCIS approved more than 10,000 Cubans for lawful permanent residency in October 2024 but just dozens by the end of 2025; over the same window, monthly ICE arrests of Cubans rose from fewer than 200 to more than 1,000. “This is a dramatic curtailing of immigration from Cuba,” said David Bier, the Cato immigration studies director who authored the report.