On Friday’s Morning Joe, the MS NOW liberal morning program discussed a possible ramp-up of immigration enforcement and deportations in the coming months, as frequent panelist and Puck News partner John Heilemann told co-host Mika Brzezinski that the “MAGA base” wanted more deportations and “they want to see more brown people sent out of the country.”
The segment focused on a The Washington Post report on DHS and ICE usage of new warehouse centers as ICE detention sites.
The show’s 9 a.m. host, Jonathan Lemire, said the administration was “telegraphing” a new deportation plan. He agreed with earlier Heilemann comments that the plan would be a mistake.
Lemire said, “But there is a sense in the Trump administration they are going to ramp this back up. They think this is a signature promise. And I agree with John's analysis. This would be a political mistake.”
On Friday's Morning Joe, amid a discussion on a possible deportation ramp-up, frequent panelist John Heilemann said the "MAGA base" wants "to see more brown people sent out of the country." pic.twitter.com/Ltvc98TZCA
— Nick (@nspin310) May 15, 2026
He also insinuated Trump wanted another immigration fight:
But there are some in Trump's orbit who reflexively, when things are bad politically, what do you do? You always fall back on immigration. And then second term, that means these deportations. And perhaps even they want that fight again, not necessarily violence on the streets, but I mean, the political tension to start talking about immigration ahead of the midterms, thinking maybe that will fire up Republicans who otherwise are pretty downtrodden about their chances.
Brzezinski focused on a liberal talking point of ICE detention centers as part of for-profit private prisons, a point that had been a push against progressive billionaire California candidate Tom Steyer, whose opponents alleged he made part of his fortune off private prisons.
Brzezinski then asked Heliemann if MAGA supported ICE actions and “human profit machines”:
Is there MAGA support for these human profit machines that are based on cruelty, separating people in inhumane conditions? Like, are people rallying and saying, “yay” at his events or whatever? They want this? Are we seeing a desire for what we have seen so far with ICE among the MAGA base?
Heilemann responded and said there was “enthusiasm” among the MAGA base for the “deportation agenda, broadly speaking,” as he told her, “most voters don't make the kind of - or kind of parsing this out in the way you are, Mika.”
Heilemann continued with another insinuation of racism: “And they want to see more brown people sent out of the country.”
He continued with more about the “base” and said they were “willing to overlook almost anything in the service of the cause, which was ‘get the illegals.’”
To close, Heillemann put all the MS NOW and liberal attacks of Trump into one before the midterms: "(...) this is one of those issues, along with prices, Jeffrey Epstein, the profiteering, the ballroom, focus on himself, and then the cruelty on the streets of American cities."
The one glowing thing ignored by Helliemann and the Morning Joe crew was the violent criminals ICE has deported, and, as more instances of illegal immigrant crime emerged, like the killing of Sheridan Gorman, the media had continued with their selective coverage.
The transcript is below. Click "expand":
MS NOW’s Morning Joe
May 15, 2026
6:36:08 AM Eastern
(...)
JONATHAN LEMIRE: We were talking. They're telegraphing, it's coming again. And there have been some suggestion they're going to back off this warehouse plan, we've seen this week that's not the case. Stephen Miller has been - he's lost some of his less visible than he was. He still retains remarkable clout inside the White House. He's still the face of this.
Markwayne Mullin, the new secretary, has taken some time to put his people in place. You know, obviously, Tom Homan presents a different, perhaps more competent face than Corey Lewandowski and Kristi Noem. But they're ramping up again, and they have not made any official go decision.
But there is a sense in the Trump administration they are going to ramp this back up. They think this is a signature promise. And I agree with John's analysis. This would be a political mistake.
But there are some in Trump's orbit who reflexively, when things are bad politically, what do you do? You always fall back on immigration. And then second term, that means these deportations. And perhaps even they want that fight again, not necessarily violence on the streets, but I mean, the political tension to start talking about immigration ahead of the midterms, thinking maybe that will fire up Republicans who otherwise are pretty downtrodden about their chances.
(...)
6:37:16 AM Eastern
MIKA BRZEZINSKI: That's what - Is there MAGA support for these human profit machines that are based on cruelty, separating people in inhumane conditions? Like, are people rallying and saying, “yay” at his events or whatever? They want this? Are we seeing a desire for what we have seen so far with ICE among the MAGA base?
JOHN HEILEMANN: I think among the MAGA base, there is there's enthusiasm for the deportation agenda broadly speaking. People don't make- I think in general, most voters don't make the kind of - or kind of parsing this out in the way you are, Mika.
I think what the MAGA base wants is more deportations. Their problem in Minneapolis, or not even their problem. I don't think they cared very much about what happened in Minneapolis, frankly. And they want to see more brown people sent out of the country. They don't - if that means the for-profit penitentiaries -
BRZEZINSKI: I’m listening, yeah.
HEILEMANN: - that's kind of in the weeds for a lot of people. What they're like is like, “we want deportations. We want them now.” That is not, by the way, obviously not a majority of the country. It's not even a majority, certainly not even majority. I don't think of the Republican Party.
But there is a - we think about the trump base. They are willing to overlook almost anything in the service of the cause, which is get the “illegals” out. And I think that Trump is right, that that general cause is popular with his base. But again, he's doesn’t have a problem with his base, really.
He has a bigger problem with independent voters for whom what they saw on the streets in Minneapolis was an enormous problem. And if you look at Donald Trump's numbers with independents, which is what's killing them heading into the midterms, this is one of those issues, along with prices, Jeffrey Epstein, the profiteering, the ballroom, focus on himself, and then the cruelty on the streets of American cities.
That's why you're sitting at numbers for Donald Trump with independents that are in the 20s at this point. It's the constellation of those issues. This is not going to help in his political fortunes, or the Republican party's political fortunes with those voters. And those are the voters who are key.
(...)
