A DONEGAL MAN facing deportation from the US next week joined the waiting list for green card applications three years ago.

The 40-year-old father of two American-born children, aged nine and ten, and owner of a small construction company near Boston, was recently arrested and taken to a detention center run by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after a driving-related conviction.

He is now scheduled to be deported from Newark International Airport in New Jersey next week.

John Foley, the man’s Boston-based immigration attorney, said his client has lived in the US for over 15 years after overstaying a travel visa and is currently awaiting a decision on his legal residency petition with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Foley said he had pushed for his client’s release under 24/7 monitoring with an ankle bracelet.

“They just said no,” Foley explained, adding that officials showed no hesitation in denying the request.

He said there was “no flexibility” from officials in their decision, noting that ICE officers had been more willing to compromise in previous years before the Trump administration.

“There’s a whole new mentality among law enforcement and immigration officers under Trump 2.0,” Foley said.

They’re intent on instilling fear, and it’s working – they’re proud of it. I’ve never seen anything like this before; we’re in a whole new era now.

Since January, the Trump administration has intensified immigration enforcement, carrying out widespread arrests at immigration courts across the US.

Over 70,000 people have been detained and deported since Trump took office this year.

Increased deportations have impacted many Irish nationals living in the US, sparking concern among communities and advocacy groups about family separations and legal rights.

Foley explained that, in addition to being separated from his children, the Donegal man will have to let go of all his staff and sell his construction equipment.

The man has now “resigned himself” to returning to Ireland and being banned from the US – and his children – for ten years, the attorney said.

“I’m trying to avoid ICE sending him on a long, slow drive to Newark International Airport by showing his valid Irish passport and offering to pay for a flight out of Boston, but I haven’t heard back from officials,” Foley added.

He said fear of deportation is growing among Irish immigrants and other diasporas in the US.

“It’s not just the Irish, it’s everybody – I’m getting calls from people I represented 20 years ago who really have nothing to worry about, but they have prior criminal convictions, so they’re stressed,” Foley said.

He described Trump’s immigration and deportation policies as “un-American.”

The Irish Department of Foreign Affairs said it “stands ready to provide consular assistance” to the Donegal man being deported next week.