A prominent US journalist, openly critical of former President Donald Trump and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE), has ignited a major controversy by revealing she was offered a position as a deportation officer following what she describes as a shockingly brief and superficial vetting process.
The 'Six-Minute' Interview and Tentative Offer
In a detailed account published this week, Laura Jedeed, a reporter for Slate and an army veteran, documented her experience attending an ICE Career Expo in Arlington, Texas, in August 2025. Jedeed, who identifies as "anti-ICE," stated her initial aim was to investigate the application process. However, she claims her interview with a recruiter lasted less than six minutes and involved only basic questions about her name, age, and military background.
Despite not completing any official agency paperwork at the event, Jedeed says she received a "tentative offer" via email on 3 September 2025. The email directed her to complete forms for a background check, including inquiries about domestic violence convictions and driver's licence details. Jedeed asserts she intentionally left these forms blank.
From Tentative to 'Final Offer' Without Submission
The situation escalated when, weeks later, Jedeed logged into the USAJobs government portal. To her astonishment, she discovered her application status showed "Entered on Duty" and indicated she had received a final offer, despite having submitted none of the required key documents. "What I actually saw was so implausible, so impossible, that at first I did not understand what I was looking at," she wrote.
Jedeed proceeded with a scheduled drug test—despite recent cannabis use—and was subsequently contacted to schedule a medical examination. She ultimately declined the position, suggesting the episode points to a "extremely leaky ship" in ICE's recruitment drive.
DHS Denial and Mounting Security Questions
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees ICE, has publicly rejected Jedeed's account. On 14 January 2026, DHS posted on X that her story was a "lazy lie," insisting she was never formally offered a job. They stated the tentative selection letter was merely an invitation to submit information for further review, a standard step for all applicants.
Jedeed countered this denial by releasing a screen-recording video that appears to show a final offer letter and an onboarding date within the government system. Slate stands by its reporting, with a spokesperson emphasising the evidence shows Jedeed advanced "through multiple hiring stages beyond the 'tentative selection letter.'"
The incident has refocused attention on longstanding concerns about ICE's recruitment and training standards, particularly during periods of rapid hiring expansion. Jedeed posed stark questions about the potential security implications: "How many convicted domestic abusers are being given guns and sent into other people’s homes?"
