A new report from congressional Democrats shows that President Trump’s third-country deportation program cost American taxpayers more than $40 million in the past year. This is a huge amount of money for a program that appears focused more on scaring people than on actual deportations.
The report includes a disturbing admission about the program’s real purpose. It quotes a U.S. official who said the point of these deportations is to “scare people.” The official explained that the administration can “threaten people that they will literally be dropped in the middle of nowhere.”
According to Mediaite, this 30-page report comes from a ten-month investigation by Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, led by Senator Jeanne Shaheen. The investigation looked at third-country deportations, which means removing someone from the United States to a country that is not their home country. The report estimates the total cost through January 2026 is likely over $40 million.
The money breakdown reveals a troubling pattern of wasteful spending
More than $32 million went directly to five countries: Equatorial Guinea, Rwanda, El Salvador, Eswatini, and Palau. Some of this money was sent before any people even arrived in these countries. The cost per person is extremely high.
The administration paid at least one country more than $1 million for each person received. Rwanda got $7.5 million from the U.S. to accept third-country nationals, but as of January, only seven people had been sent there.
Palau received $7.5 million in U.S. funds but has not taken in a single person yet. This supports the idea that the goal is simply to threaten migrants with being sent to places like Palau or Eswatini. The program seems designed to create fear, not to work efficiently. This isn’t the first time the administration has faced criticism, as White House staffers reacted to controversial presidential posts earlier this year.
El Salvador has received the most migrants, taking in about 250 third-country nationals. Even though this is better than Rwanda or Palau, each person still costs taxpayers $20,755. The program also has huge logistical costs.
The administration often uses military aircraft for these transfers, which can cost more than $32,000 per hour to operate. Because of how the third-country system works, taxpayers often pay twice. They pay once to send the migrant to the third country, and then pay again to fly that person to their actual home country.
The congressional Democrats leading the investigation are worried about the lack of oversight. They warned that without proper accountability, “it is unknown whether U.S. funds are facilitating corruption or other abuses.” The program looks like an expensive scheme designed mainly for intimidation. Meanwhile, Trump allies attempted to prosecute Democratic lawmakers in what critics called a politically motivated case that quickly fell apart.
Published: Feb 14, 2026 12:15 pm