Donald Trump is reportedly spending millions more on weapons for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to descend on American cities and give them “guided missile warheads.” Independent journalist Judd Legum of Popular Information reports that between Trump’s inauguration and October 18th, spending in the small arms category totaled $71,515,762.
‘Most of the spending was on guns and armor, but there have also been significant purchases of chemical weapons and “guided missile warheads and explosive components.”’ Legum writes.
Small arms include individual-use firearms, such as handguns (pistols, revolvers) and shoulder-fired weapons (rifles, submachine guns, light machine guns).
Via Popular Information:
On September 29, 2025, ICE made a $9,098,590 purchase from Geissele Automatics, which sells semi-automatic and automatic rifles. The total spending by ICE in the small arms category between January 20 and October 18, 2024, was $9,715,843.
Spending by ICE on guns and other weapons this year not only dwarfs spending during the Biden administration but also during Trump’s first term. In 2019, for example, ICE spent $5.7 million on small arms through October 18. Average ICE spending on small arms during Trump’s first four years was about $8.4 million.
