White House Defends Controversial ‘Remigration’ Policy Amid Dictionary Definition Fallout

The State Department established a secretive Office of Remigration last year, a concept drawn from extremist European movements that advocate expelling foreigners. Senior career officials warned that the term “remigration” carries white-supremacist connotations, showing a Wikipedia entry on its racist origins, yet the office was launched in an all-hands call on June 9, 2025. White House spokesperson Lauren Bis attempted to refute the criticism by citing Merriam-Webster, stating the term simply means migrants returning to their home countries, despite the dictionary also defining it as the forcible return of immigrants and their descendants.

The administration continues to deny extremist links while employing nationalist rhetoric. Christian Ehrhardt, the office’s head, has secured at least $410 million in deals with 31 African and Latin American countries to receive deportees, arrangements that sidestep statutory human-rights protections and involve regimes with authoritarian records. These actions expand the policy beyond standard deportations, raising concerns about legal and ethical implications.