Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen has aligned himself with President Trump's hard-line immigration agenda, directing the Nebraska State Patrol to partner with ICE and allowing the agency to use a former state prison, now called Cornhusker Clink, to hold detainees. He has echoed Trump's rhetoric about "criminal illegal aliens" who have "invaded our country." However, an investigation by The New York Times and The Flatwater Free Press found that Pillen Family Farms, one of the nation's largest pork producers with about 1,200 employees, has employed undocumented workers for more than a decade.

Court records and interviews with over 40 current and former employees show at least 20 Pillen hog farms employed undocumented immigrants. At least a dozen workers were charged with using fake or stolen IDs between 2015 and 2024. Former worker David Armendariz, who overstayed his visa in 2008, said a farm manager accepted his fake driver's license.

Former manager Quinten Rowley said background checks ramped up around the time Pillen decided to run for governor. Pillen's spokeswoman, Laura Strimple, stated he "never knowingly hired an illegal immigrant and went above and beyond the legal requirements to verify the immigration status of his employees.".