DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin told NewsNation on Wednesday that he and President Donald Trump chose to concentrate immigration enforcement on the most serious criminals and people who broke parole rules.

Mullin said the department is reaching record deportation figures while seeking a lower-profile method that still fully applies federal statutes. During the nomination period they discussed keeping enforcement undiminished, settling on those two groups.

He explained that nearly all southern-border arrivals under the prior administration received immediate parole after providing contact details, and failing to report later changes constitutes a violation. Targeting those cases plus serious offenders often yields additional arrests because they share housing with others present illegally.