New York Post

Ron vows deport of ‘6-7 mill.’

- Diana Glebova

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is publicly vowing, if he wins the White House next year, to deport anyone who crossed the border illegally during the Biden administra­tion.

The Republican told reporters in Long Beach, Calif., Friday that such a mass removal would be his “first priority.”

“Everyone that has come illegally under Biden. We got to go — they’re sending back,” DeSantis (inset) said. “That’s going to be the first priority. That’s probably 6 or 7 million people right there.”

A DeSantis campaign official told The Post on Monday that the would-be 47th president would achieve the ambitious promise by boosting the ranks of both the Border Patrol and Immigratio­n and Customs Enforcemen­t, as laid out in a part of his campaign website titled “Stop The Invasion.”

“We will hire more Border Patrol agents and more removal agents to make sure that even if illegal immigrants cross, they will swiftly be found and deported,” the website states. “We will allow ICE . . . officers to . . . focus on illegal alien entries . . . and those with criminal records.”

The official provided no details on how DeSantis will deport the record-breaking number of migrants whom Customs and Border Protection has encountere­d during Biden’s presidency. In fiscal year 2022, the number topped 2.76 million, according to CBP.

DeSantis’ estimate of “6 or 7 million” likely comes from the number of illegal immigrants encountere­d by CBP since 2021.

The Florida governor is not the only candidate pushing for mass deportatio­ns. Former President Donald Trump, also speaking Friday, vowed to enact “the largest deportatio­n operation in the history of our country.”

“Ron DeSantis has copied President Trump’s Agenda 47 policy proposals,” Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung told The Post on Monday. “Nobody wants a fake moron like Ron, when they can have the real thing like President Trump.”

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