Obama absolutely deported a massive number of people, historically high numbers, enough that immigration advocates at the time openly called him the “Deporter-in-Chief.” That part is not a myth.

The difference is how those deportations were carried out. Under Obama, enforcement was largely focused on recent border crossers and people already in custody, often through expedited removals. It was bureaucratic, procedural, and mostly invisible to the public. There weren’t constant interior raids, and long-term residents were increasingly deprioritized later in his presidency.

Trump, on the other hand, did not surpass Obama’s totals, but he radically changed the operating philosophy. Interior enforcement was aggressive, highly visible, and deliberately public. Priority categories were loosened to the point of meaninglessness, and the enforcement itself became part of the political messaging.

So if you’re talking about raw numbers, Obama qualifies. If you’re talking about tactics, visibility, and the lived experience inside the country, Trump’s approach is what most people actually mean when they say “mass deportation.” Same machinery. Very different mode of operation.