WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump honored the Immigration & Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection agencies at the White House Monday as part of his effort to highlight immigration issues ahead of the midterm elections.

"We love you, we support you, we will always have your back," Trump said, adding: "For America to be a strong nation, we must have strong borders."

The event, called the "Salute to the Heroes of ICE & CBP" ceremony, reflects his attempt to seize on liberal complaints about immigration enforcement. Democrats are critical of tactics they say are too aggressive and out of bounds, including the now defunct “zero tolerance” policy, which separated families.

The event shows Trump is not going to moderate his immigration policies and he is pushing ICE as a campaign issue with only months to go before the November elections. He has frequently criticized a handful of high-profile Democrats for their calls to abolish ICE, or at least overhaul the agency.

Trump said that a majority of voters support ICE and that opponents are merely “a small group” looking for publicity.

“They have no courage - they have no guts. They just have big, loud mouths,” Trump said. “We don’t want to put up with that.”

The federal agencies have been thrust into the debate over the separation of immigrant families at the border.

Hundreds of children still remain separated from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico Border due to the Trump administration’s immigration policy. The latest government figures reveal more than 550 migrant children are still not reunited with their families, according to the American Civil Liberties Union. 

Instead of focusing on the family reunifications, the White House event had a panel discussion on how ICE and CBP are fighting terrorism and combating drug and human trafficking.

“You are the patriots, and you are the heroes,” Trump said. “You are the fighters, and you are the warriors for justice.”