Immigration chief in Phoenix fighting belief that federal government isn’t doing enough

Immigration chief: ‘We’re going to get this right’

PHOENIX — The director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Thursday that the removal of illegal immigrants from the country is at an all-time high.

ICE Director John Morton visited Phoenix in part to combat a common belief that the federal government isn’t doing enough to fight illegal immigration.

He said his agency “is in this for the long haul,” and to those who doubt the federal government’s effectiveness — the numbers speak for themselves.

Morton said ICE removed a record 380,000 illegal immigrants from the U.S. last fiscal year, and about a third of them were convicted criminals.