The immigration policy under the Trump presidency will completely change.
President-elect Trump ran on a very tough immigration policy. Yet, when he was elected, he started to backpedal on many of the things that he said during the campaign. Many people are asking Donald Trump to keep the promises that he made during the campaign. Many Republicans and Democrats wonder what Trump’s policies and recommendations will look like once he comes into office. It is important to remember that Trump can only accomplish without legislatures.
What will be Trump’s Immigration Policy?
The election of Donald Trump has left over 700,000 undocumented people who came to the United States wondering where they stand. It also leaves over 5 million people who came to the United States as a parent of a legal citizen wondering where they stand. Trump has said that he will repeal all executive orders that President Obama enacted. In many cases, these people may have to leave the country or face exportation.
Trump could also order the State Department, the executive department that recommends foreign policies, to examine visas much more carefully. Homeland Security, responsible for stopping threats on United States soil, says that 45 million people enter the U.S. each year with a visa. They estimate that 416,500 people are in the country with an expired visa. While it is unlikely that Trump could kick out a whole group of citizens, he could order that the State Department scrutinize visa applications from certain countries more closely.
Trump is probably going to recommend Senator Jeff Sessions from Alabama as the head of the Justice Department, which is the highest authority in the U.S., to enforce criminal law. Jeff has been known for promoting tough immigration policies when he was in the legislature.
What Other Actions may Donald Trump Take on Immigration?
He is also likely to recommend General John Kelly who is the former commander of United States Southern Commander as the head of Homeland Security. If Trump makes these two moves, then he is sending a signal to the Border Patrol that he is ready to stop people from illegally crossing the border.
Von Spakovsky, spokesman for the conservative think tank Heritage Foundation says:
“All of that can be done on day one and that’s going to immediately start not only reducing the population that’s in the country, but it will have an immediate effect on the flow into the country because the message will go out.”
Congress, the legislative body in the United States, would have to approve Trump’s appointments, but experts believe that will not be a problem.
Trump would then have to work with Congress to pass further recommendations from his plan. Building a wall and installing additional personnel on the Southern border would require legislative action. Look for Congress to battle out how much money to spend on immigration reforms when they approve the budget bill.
With Trump’s support, look for Congress to take up Kate’s Bill at an early date. This bill named after Kate Steinle who was killed by an illegal immigrant. This bill would escalate prison time for anyone found entering the country illegally more than once.
Conclusion
President-elect Donald Trump is likely to be harder on immigration than President Obama. Look for him to repeal some of the executive orders almost immediately. He will likely step up inspections on visas. He is likely to recommend appointments of Sessions and Kelly sending tough messages to those crossing the United States-Mexico border
illegally. Congress will have to face the battle over the budget very soon which will send strong clues on rather they are willing to support Trump’s tougher immigration stance.
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