Just 100 days into his second term, President Donald Trump is earning praise from the law enforcement community for restoring what many officers say has been lost over the last eight years: the ability to do their job without political interference.

Sgt. Betsy Brantner Smith, a 29-year law enforcement veteran and spokesperson for the National Police Association, told Fox News Digital that Trump’s executive orders have lifted a major burden off the backs of police across the country.

“Since Trump has returned to office, it has really been, it’s been a burden lifted for law enforcement,” Smith said. “And I think that this vilification of law enforcement is going to fade because politicians at the highest level are not going to go along with it anymore.”

On his first day back in office, Trump signed an executive order rescinding dozens of Biden-era actions, including a policing directive that encouraged “alternatives to arrest,” restricted force during arrests, and banned local departments from accessing surplus federal law enforcement gear.

According to Smith, Trump’s reversal of that order has brought optimism back to a profession battered by years of anti-police sentiment—what she described as the “war on cops” that began under Barack Obama and continued under Joe Biden.

She believes the new pro-police messaging is already having an impact, not just on morale, but on recruitment.

“What that is going to do, albeit slowly, is help us recover from these last four years of police officers retiring early, or fleeing places like New York and Chicago and LA,” Smith said. “I think we’ll start to see young people interested in the profession again.”

Trump also signed a separate order on day one aimed at cracking down on cross-border crime. The “Executive Order on Protecting the American People Against Invasion” directs the Department of Homeland Security to partner with state and local law enforcement to target violent criminals, gang members, human traffickers, and drug smugglers.

According to the National Association of Police Organizations (NAPO), the order gives state and local officers greater “latitude” and access to federal resources to pursue cases involving criminal aliens.

Smith, who resides in Arizona, says the shift has been most visible along the southern border, where morale among Border Patrol agents has surged.

“The morale in the border patrol here in southern Arizona… it’s exploded,” she said. “You see those guys and gals out and about, and they’re so happy because they get to do their jobs.”

Hilton Beckham, CBP Assistant Commissioner for Public Affairs, echoed that sentiment, saying that under Trump, agents are finally operating at “full force.”

“Change starts with leadership,” Beckham said. “Under a president who restores authority to law enforcement and backs the men and women on the frontlines, we’re seeing a complete 180 at the border.”

The results are already showing. CBP reports that illegal crossings in March dropped to their lowest level in over a decade, a 94% decline from the same month in 2024.

“Historic lows in illegal crossings — numbers even veteran agents haven’t seen — and an unprecedented whole-of-government collaboration are delivering real results,” Beckham said.

“The CBP mission never changed,” she added. “But now we have the ability to enforce it fully: holding lawbreakers accountable, restoring order, and putting Americans first.”

While Democrats continue to push soft-on-crime policies and handcuff local departments with red tape, Trump’s approach is reversing course—prioritizing public safety, empowering law enforcement, and sending a clear message: criminals will be held accountable, and cops will be backed.

For officers like Smith and thousands more around the country, that support isn’t just political. It’s personal—and it’s long overdue.