President Donald Trump’s plan to quickly add 10,000 Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers is running into a basic hurdle. More than one-third of new recruits at ICE’s Georgia training academy have failed the agency’s fitness test, according to reporting by The Atlantic.
Why physical standards matter for field arrests
ICE has tripled arrests on U.S. streets under Trump, and the work can involve foot chases and physical confrontations, The Atlantic reported. The academy’s screen — 15 push-ups, 32 sit-ups and a 1.5-mile run in 14 minutes — has become the biggest obstacle for fresh recruits despite incentives that include a $50,000 hiring-and-retention bonus, according to the outlet.
The fitness requirements are similar to many state police fitness requirements. Iowa’s law enforcement academy, for instance, requires a female cadet under 30 years old to complete 15 push-ups, 32 sit-ups and run 1.5 miles in just under 15 1/2 minutes.
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What ICE says about the problem
An Oct. 5 email from ICE headquarters complained that “a considerable amount of athletically allergic candidates” had “misrepresented” their condition and directed field offices to pretest fitness before sending recruits to the academy, The Atlantic reported.
“We all know the self-certification method has failed,” wrote Ralph Ferguson, an ICE operations official, according to the outlet.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin told The Atlantic that the one-third figure only reflects “a subset of candidates in initial basic academy classes.” DHS expects to fill about 85% of new deportation officer positions with experienced law enforcement hires who can be fast-tracked.
Those hires won’t be required to pass the academy’s fitness test but “remain subject to medical, fitness, and background requirements,” she said.
How ICE is adjusting
DHS confirmed to The Atlantic that the agency has moved fitness checks earlier in the training sequence “to improve efficiency and accountability—not to lower standards.” The outlet reported that some academy dropouts have also failed exams on immigration law and Fourth Amendment search limits.
The agency’s overall goal of 10,000 additions by January “remains on track,” according to The Atlantic. ICE received more than 175,000 applications in a recruitment drive funded by $75 billion from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. However, the pool represents roughly 50,000 unique applicants because many applied for multiple jobs, the outlet reported.
In addition to prescreening for fitness, field offices have been told to split cubicles and seek extra space as they add staff. Officials also cited shortages of guns, vehicles, parking and even bathrooms while new hires complete online training.
