By Jeff Mason, Reuters
U.S. President Donald Trump, who pledged to help protect young people known as “Dreamers” brought illegally to the United States as children, called on Sunday for money to fund a border wall to be part of any immigration deal.
In a list of “principles” laid out in documents released by the White House, the Trump administration also pressed for a crackdown on unaccompanied minors who enter the United States, many of them from Central America.
(Independent Women’s Forum’s Nan Hayworth on President Trump’s immigration plan. Courtesy of Fox Business and YouTube)
The plan, which was delivered to leaders in Congress on Sunday night, drew a swift rebuke from Democrats, who are seeking a legislative fix for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program that Trump ended last month.
“The administration can’t be serious about compromise or helping the Dreamers if they begin with a list that is anathema to the Dreamers, to the immigrant community and to the vast majority of Americans,” said House of Representatives Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer.
“The list includes the wall, which was explicitly ruled out of the negotiations.”
“If the president was serious about protecting the Dreamers, his staff has not made a good faith effort to do so,” they said in a statement.
The Trump administration wants the wish list to guide immigration reform in Congress and accompany a bill to replace DACA, the Obama-era program that protected nearly 800,000 “Dreamers” from deportation and allowed them to secure work permits.
If enacted, the White House priorities could result in the deportation of Dreamers’ parents.
The proposals emphasize immigration enforcement and include a request for funds to hire 370 more immigration judges, 1,000 attorneys for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, 300 federal prosecutors and 10,000 additional ICE agents to enforce immigration laws.
(The Trump administration released a list of hard-line immigration principles Oct. 8, which could threaten to derail a deal in Congress to protect “dreamers” from deportation. Courtesy of The Washington Post and YouTube)
“These priorities are essential to mitigate the legal and economic consequences of any grant of status to DACA recipients,” Trump’s legislative affairs director, Marc Short, told reporters on a conference call.
The White House made clear it would not be pushing for Dreamers to achieve U.S. citizenship, only legal status, in a potential deal.
Trump told Congress it had six months to come up with legislation to help Dreamers, who are a fraction of the 11 million illegal immigrants in the United States, most of whom are Hispanic.
The documents call for tighter standards for those seeking U.S. asylum, denial of federal grants to “sanctuary cities” that serve as refuges for illegal immigrants, and a requirement that employers use an electronic verification system known as “E-Verify” to keep illegal immigrants from securing jobs.
HARD LINE
Trump campaigned for president on a pledge to toughen immigration policies and build a wall along the U.S. border with Mexico.
He vowed repeatedly that Mexico would pay for the wall, but began prodding Congress earlier this year to approve funding. Mexico has said it will not pay for the wall.
Trump’s suggestion after a meeting with Schumer and Pelosi that wall funding would not have to be part of a DACA fix alarmed some of his supporters.
The White House sees the wall as a priority but has indicated that it could be established as part of a DACA bill or through other legislative avenues.
Administration officials said that legislation that did not include all of the priorities on the list would not necessarily trigger a presidential veto.
Republicans in Congress have introduced several bills that include aspects of Trump’s ideas, but many Democrats and immigration groups see the proposals as too harsh.
“The Trump administration has put forth a serious proposal to address the enforcement of our immigration laws and border security,“ said Republican House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte in a statement.
“We cannot fix the DACA problem without fixing all of the issues that led to the underlying problem of illegal immigration in the first place.”
The White House’s wish list targets the flow of unaccompanied minors into the United States.
It would require such children to be treated the same, regardless of their countries of origin “so long as they are not victims of human trafficking and can be safely returned home or removed to safe third countries,” the White House documents said.
It would expand the list of “inadmissible aliens” to include members of gangs, those who have been convicted of an aggravated felony, and former spouses and children of drug and human traffickers if they receive benefits from such behavior.
(President Trump is tackling one of his election promises by ordering a border wall and cracking down on illegal immigration by stripping funding from “sanctuary cities” and ending a policy of releasing undocumented immigrants. Judy Woodruff gets views on what these moves mean from Marielena Hincapie of the National Immigration Law Center and Jessica Vaughan of the Center for Immigration Studies. Courtesy of PBS NewsHour and YouTube)
The plan also seeks to reduce the number of people who overstay their visas and reform how green cards that establish legal permanent residents are granted.
Trump’s White House has so far not been able to achieve a major legislative victory, casting doubt on the potential for a breakthrough on immigration reform, which Republican and Democratic presidents have tried before without success.
Since Trump took office in January, his fellow Republicans have failed to repeal and replace former Democratic President Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare, and a White House plan for tax reform needs more support.
Reporting by Jeff Mason; Additional reporting by Richard Cowan, Ginger Gibson and Phil Stewart; Editing by Peter Cooney
Learn More…
Attorney General Sessions Statement on President Trump’s Immigration Priorities Announcement
Attorney General Jeff Sessions today issued the following statement on restoring the rule of law to a lawful immigration system:
“For decades the American people rightly have pleaded with their government for a lawful system of immigration.”
“They have asked for secure borders and an immigration system that serves the national interest.”
“Unfortunately, over the last several decades respect for the rule of law has broken down and immigration enforcement has been sacrificed for the sake of political expediency. This has made us less secure and it cannot stand.”
“Now President Trump has put forth a series of proposals that will restore the rule of law to our immigration system, prioritize America’s safety and security, and end the lawlessness.”
“These are reasonable proposals that will build on the early success of President Trump’s leadership.”
“This plan will work. If followed it will produce an immigration system with integrity and one in which we can take pride.”
“Perhaps the best result will be that unlawful attempts to enter will continue their dramatic decline.”
“I applaud President Trump and urge Congress to listen to the American people and swiftly pass these commonsense proposals into law.”
“The Department of Justice stands ready to continue making our neighborhoods and communities safe and secure again.”
DHS Acting Secretary Elaine Duke’s Statement on Immigration Legislation: Priorities and Principles
Department of Homeland Security Acting Secretary Elaine Duke’s statement on the President’s Immigration Legislation: Priorities and Principles sent today to the U.S. Congress:
“When crafting the Administration’s immigration principles, the President asked us to focus on measures that will assist the Department of Homeland Security’s law enforcement personnel with what they need to enforce our immigration laws, secure our border, and protect American communities across this country.
“DHS frontline personnel identified many of the principles outlined today, including closing loopholes in our ability to enforce immigration laws and eliminating the magnets for illegal immigration.”
“I look forward to working with Congress on legislation that will enact many of these common sense and necessary reforms that will inevitably better secure our nation.”
