As the deadline imposed by the immigrant-averse Trump administration to hire 10,000 new ICE agents by year’s end to carry out the president’s goal of deporting one million people annually nears, many government insiders are growing concerned about the frantic pace of recruitment coupled with the lowering of training standards for would-be Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers led by Kristi Noem.

ICE has placed new recruits into its training program before they’ve been fully vetted, one current and two former Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials told NBC News, only to later discover that some failed drug tests, have disqualifying criminal backgrounds or pose other security concerns.

Other recruits — some lured by ads promising $50,000 signing bonuses and forgiven student

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