Sen. Jim Justice, R-W.Va., is breaking with President Donald Trump over the administration’s stepped-up Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations, questioning whether federal authorities should be removing some illegal immigrants who have established themselves in American communities.

“You're dragging people away that have lived on your street corner for 15 years, and I don't know that we need to be doing that,” Justice said.

Rather than defending the administration’s enforcement efforts, Justice argued that Trump officials should acknowledge what he views as mistakes and change course.

“To get better, the first thing you got to do is admit you're doing something wrong,” Justice said. “In this situation, with all that’s going on and all the stuff, we probably got to step back from it and say, ‘Maybe we're doing something wrong here or there,’ and then adjust to that.”

Justice’s comments amount to a notable break with Trump on one of the president’s central policy priorities. Trump campaigned on dramatically increasing immigration enforcement and has made deporting illegal immigrants a major focus of his administration.

His criticism also comes as the administration has expanded ICE enforcement operations across the country. ICE arrests reached more than 43,000 in June, over 49,000 in July and nearly 51,000 in August, according to an analysis of federal enforcement activity.

Justice’s remarks effectively put him on the side of those calling for a retreat from at least some of the administration’s enforcement tactics, even as Trump and his administration continue to defend the crackdown.

The West Virginia senator has otherwise maintained close ties with the Trump administration on a range of issues, making his decision to publicly question the president’s immigration strategy particularly notable. His comments could also put him in an awkward position with a Republican base that has consistently identified illegal immigration and border enforcement as major priorities.

For Justice, the message was clear: even as the Trump administration moves aggressively to enforce immigration laws, the senator believes it should reconsider at least some of the methods being used.