On the first day of his second term, President Donald Trump announced several executive actions addressing immigration and border security.
Trump signed orders his officials called “common-sense immigration policies.” These include declaring a national emergency at the US southern border, deploying armed forces, building a border wall, ending asylum and ending birthright citizenship for some children born in the US.
During his inaugural address, Trump said, “We have a government that has given unlimited funding to defend foreign borders, but has refused to defend American borders or, more importantly, its own people.”
In talks with reporters earlier in the day, Trump officials outlined the administration’s plans to deal with the “national security and public safety crisis” at the U.S.-Mexico border.
An incoming White House official said, “President Trump was elected with a resounding mandate to deliver on promises he made during the campaign, including securing the southern border and carrying out the largest deportation of migrant criminals in history. His pledge is included.” Speaking on background, this is a method often used by US officials to remain anonymous. Officials also emphasize the administration’s commitment to implementing the largest deportation of immigrant criminals in US history.
Here are some schemes of the administration.
national emergency on the border
Trump said he would deploy troops to the US-Mexico border, including the National Guard, to assist existing law enforcement officials. Officials stress that border security is national security, and the administration is committed to securing the border through the use of force.
“What this action does is to deploy armed forces [and] erects physical barriers by directing [Department of Defense] And [Department of Homeland Security] Secretaries have been asked to complete the border wall. …We are going to restore Remain in Mexico [policy]“The officer said.
Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, wrote on Twitter that the promise to repatriate Remain to Mexico, without Mexico’s permission, is “just words on a paper.”
The Remain in Mexico policy, first enacted during the Trump administration, requires some asylum seekers at the southern border to wait in Mexico until their hearing in U.S. immigration court.
Mexico’s Secretary of Foreign Relations Juan Ramon de la Fuente said at a press conference on Monday morning that if “they restore [Remain in Mexico]This is something we do not agree with. Our focus is different. We want to accommodate this. … The desire is to maintain the same policies as now.”
Asked about the number of troops expected to be deployed to the border, Trump administration officials said the decision would ultimately be made by the defense secretary.
The administration also rescinded the Biden administration’s border policies by expanding enforcement authority to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents and establishing federal task forces to work with state and local law enforcement in deportation efforts. doing.
mass deportation
Another announcement focuses on undocumented immigrants across the country. The Republican president repeatedly promised during his campaign to carry out mass deportations, targeting at least 11 million undocumented individuals.
In press calls with reporters, Trump officials said the administration would provide immigration authorities with the necessary “authority” to enforce existing laws. in his On the campaign trail, Trump vowed to eliminate President Joe Biden’s deportation priorities, which targeted individuals with criminal records and those considered a threat to national security, and instead include all undocumented immigrants. Will expand enforcement for.
Stephen Yale-Lohr, professor emeritus of immigration law at Cornell Law School, wrote in an email to VOA that mass deportation efforts and raids may get the most attention, but deportations will not immediately increase sharply.
“If a person already has an outstanding deportation order, he or she can be deported immediately. But this is a relatively small number. Most of those picked up will be put into deportation proceedings in immigration courts. There are already more than 3.8 million cases pending in those courts. Given that backlog, it will take many years for many people to find out whether they will be deported or allowed to remain based on asylum or some other form of protection,” he wrote.
release of migrants
The incoming administration also announced an end to the practice of releasing migrants into the US while they await their immigration court hearings, commonly known as “catch and release”.
Trump officials have not said how they will handle the increase in immigrant detentions.
refugee program
Trump is also ending the refugee resettlement program. During his first administration, he progressively reduced the annual cap on refugee admissions to a historic low of 15,000 for fiscal year 2021.
Refugee advocates said at the time that the cuts symbolized a deviation from the United States’ long-term role in global refugee resettlement.
Errol Kekic, senior vice president of programs for Church World Service, wrote in an email to reporters that his group is urging President Trump to reconsider. Church World Service is one of nine national refugee resettlement agencies authorized by the federal government to help refugees start new lives.
“Even a brief pause in programming can have a devastating impact; On people displaced by violence and persecution, on families separated by oceans and continents, and on our communities who embrace the spirit of welcome inherent in our great nation,” he wrote.
Ending Asylum and CBP One App
One of Trump’s orders calls for the immediate deportation of migrants who cross the border illegally without a chance to present their case to an asylum officer.
Shortly after Trump’s inauguration, U.S. Customs and Border Protection posted a notice on its website saying the agency was no longer using the CBP One app, which had helped nearly 1,000 people in the United States with eligibility to work. Facilitated the legal entry of millions of people.
The app allowed migrants to request an appointment to come to the border and apply for humanitarian parole or other forms of legal processing. The use of parole under the CBP One system was part of the Biden administration’s broader efforts to manage migration flows and provide legal pathways to entry rather than allowing individuals to cross the border illegally.
However, parole granted through CBP One did not guarantee permanent legal status; This generally allowed individuals to stay temporarily and, in some cases, apply for work authorization while their immigration status was being reviewed.
The notice from CBP One App also confirmed that all existing appointments have been canceled.
birthright citizenship
Ultimately Trump signed the order to end birthright citizenship. Birthright citizenship grants automatic US citizenship to anyone born on US soil, a right established by the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution.
The new administration’s actions are expected to face significant legal and political challenges, with immigrant advocacy groups expressing concerns about the implications of these policies.
The ACLU of Northern California, a non-profit organization in the United States dedicated to defending the individual rights and freedoms guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution and laws, wrote in an email to the press that they “stand ready.”
“We have been prepared to do this again since day one of the second Trump administration. …We will protect immigrants’ rights to due process in the event of mass deportations,” the email reads.
