Donald Trump achievements: Immigration and border security

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Official presidential photo of President Donald Trump
Main article: Donald Trump achievements

This article is a non-exhaustive list of Donald Trump's achievements related to immigration, illegal immigration, and border security.

There was a large change in the Trump Administration, particularly in the Justice Department,[1][2] concerning immigration policy, compared to the Obama Administration.[3] It was reported early in Trump's presidency that immigration hardliners had become influential in the Trump Administration.[4]

Legislation signed

  • H.R. 244, which was signed into law by President Trump on May 5, 2017, and funded the government through September 30, 2017, did not include funding for several of President Trump's priorities, such as defunding sanctuary cities and building new sections of the border wall. However, it did include an additional $1.5 billion in border security funding, including money to repair 40 miles of existing border barrier sections and to increase funding for ICE and CBP, among other conservative achievements.[5]

Executive actions

 
Trump signing his Jan. 27, 2017 order regarding refugees and travel from high-risk countries.
 
Countries affected by Trump's Jan. 27, 2017 travel ban.
  • January 25, 2017—Trump signed two executive orders. The first one included ordering the "immediate construction of a physical wall on the southern border," the hiring of 5,000 additional border control agents, and ending "catch-and-release" policies for illegal immigrants. The second order called for hiring an additional 10,000 federal immigration officers, re-establishing the Secure Communities Program and other local partnerships, making the deportation of criminal illegal immigrants a priority, directing the State Department to use leverage to ensure countries-of-origin take back illegal immigrants, and stripping federal grant money from sanctuary cities and states.[6]
  • January 27, 2017—Trump signed an executive order indefinitely banning the admission of Syrian refugees, suspending the overall refugee program for 120 days, suspending entry and the issuing of visas from seven failed Middle Eastern countries[7] for at least 90 days, and reducing the number of refugees allowed into the nation during the fiscal year from 110,000 to 50,000.[8][9][10] Additionally, Trump made clear that he would help Christian refugees, a reversal from the Obama Administration.[11] Despite criticism from leftists and non-conservatives, 49 percent of the American public supported the decision compared to 41 percent opposed, according to the "mainstream" Reuters,[12] and 57% percent of likely American voters supported the ban according to Rasmussen.[13] Additionally, while the leftist establishment European leaders opposed the ban, a strong majority – 55% average – of Europeans supported the ban, according to a poll in 10 European Union nations.[14][15]
  • January 30, 2017—President Trump appointed Thomas Homan, someone with a reputation for enforcing immigration laws, as acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.[16] As the head of ICE, Homan took a strong stance on illegal immigration enforcement.[17] On January 31, President Trump appointed Ronald Vitiello, who was endorsed by the National Border Patrol Council which also endorsed Trump in the 2016 election, to lead U.S. Border Patrol.[18] On April 25, 2017, Vitiello was appointed as Deputy Commissioner of Customs and Border Protection.[19]
  • March 6, 2017—President Trump signed a second executive order regarding the temporary suspension of refugees and others from certain high-risk countries after the first one was blocked by the courts. The second order made some clarifications and minor improvements over the first, such as exempting green card holders from the ban and excluding Iraq from it as it had developed an acceptable vetting process.[20][21] (after being blocked in federal courts,[22] the Supreme Court on June 26, 2017, partially reinstated the ban and allowed key portions of it to continue pending a hearing on the ban's constitutionality in October[23])
  • On March 31, 2017, after talking tough against "sanctuary cities" and illegal immigration, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced a plan to speed up the deportation of imprisoned illegals.[24][25] On April 11, 2017, Sessions issued a memorandum to U.S. attorneys, instructing them to enforce much stricter guidelines against immigration crimes,[26] and he announced the Justice Department would hire 125 immigration judges in the next two years.[27]
  • In late March/early April 2017, the Trump Administration cracked down on H-1B visas in a series of actions, making it much more difficult for entry-level programmers to enter the U.S., combating corruption in the program, and making sure that Americans were not discriminated against.[28] On April 18, 2017, President Trump signed an executive order restricting the H-1B visa to give the hiring preference to American workers and enacting stronger enforcement of laws requiring the use of American-made materials in federal projects.[29] Experts on the H-1B visa supported his order.[30]
  • April 14, 2017—President Trump appointed two conservatives on immigration issues to senior positions in the Department of Homeland Security.[31] Like Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Secretary of Homeland Security John F. Kelly (with the full support of President Trump[32]) also adopted a strong position against illegal immigration.[33]
  • April 26, 2017—The Department of Homeland Security established the Victims of Immigration Crime Engagement Office (VOICE), created to help support victims of illegal immigrant crime, and it established the DHS-Victim Information and Notification Exchange, which was created to help those victims track the custody status of those criminal illegal immigrants.[34]
  • It was reported in May 2017 that the Trump Administration, due to his previous executive orders, had ended Obama's "home free magnet" policy, where illegal immigrants who did not commit a serious crime (other than crossing the border illegally) did not need to fear deportation because ICE needed to gain permission from the Field Office Director before deporting them; and the Trump Administration expanded the use of expedited removal proceedings, which is the deportation of illegals without a hearing unless they request one.[35] Thus, illegal immigrants "without violent criminal histories" could be arrested and deported.[36]
  • May 5, 2017—ICE established a policy that would give illegal immigrants stays of removal only if the chairs the House and Senate Judiciary Committees or the relevant subcommittees requested them, as opposed to the earlier policy of issuing stays of removal whenever a private bill to legalize illegals was introduced in Congress.[37][38][39] This would allow ICE to deport illegals without having members of Congress obstruct deportations.[38]
  • May 9, 2017—The Department of Homeland Security reported that it had implemented tougher vetting policies at U.S. border crossings.[40]
  • Early in Trump's presidency, it was clear the U.S. government was cracking down on criminal illegal immigrants and gangs.[41] For example, between March 26 and May 6, 2017, ICE conducted a crackdown on gangs, including MS-13 and other illegal immigrant gangs, that arrested nearly 1,400 people – the largest such operation conducted up to that point.[42] The Trump Administration also cooperated with Central American countries in order to combat MS-13 recruitment in the region.[43]
  • May 2017—In order to avoid misreporting and distortions by the media, ICE established a Spanish media presence.[44][45]
  • Despite the large drop in illegal immigrant apprehensions, the amount of illegal drugs seized by Customs and Border Protection saw large increases in the beginning of Trump's presidency.[46] In addition, the number of immigration arrests increased, with a 38% increase in Trump's first 100 days.[47][48] The DHS had arrested 66,000 illegal immigrants by late June 2017.[49] By May 2017, the Trump Administration also was able to reduce the number of countries "that habitually refuse to take back immigrants whom the U.S. is trying to deport" from 20 to 12.[50] In one widely-reported incident on June 15, U.S. Border Patrol agents had to obtain a warrant[51] and raided an Arizona desert camp to arrest four illegal immigrants.[52]
  • President Trump worked to eliminate Obama's legacy of giving privileges to illegal immigrants in detention centers.[53] At the same time, the Trump Administration expanded immigration enforcement efforts, such as through building additional detention centers.[54] (The inspector general reported on June 7, 2017, but based on July 2016 inspections, that the facilities used by the DHS to detain illegal families were overall in good shape and met federal standards[55])
  • Late May 2017—The State Department introduced new and much stricter rules for vetting all people seeking a visa to enter the U.S., with the introduction of social media vetting being among the changes.[56]
  • It was reported in June 2017 that the Trump Administration began repatriating illegal immigrants given "administrative closure" by the Obama Administration, a form of "quasi-amnesty."[57]
  • June 2017—The Department of Homeland Security ended a program where 21 officials cooperated with anti-deportation and pro-amnesty organizations, and reassigned those officials to the new VOICE office which helps victims of illegal immigrant crimes.[58]
  • June 15, 2017—The DHS canceled the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA) program created by the Obama Administration in November 2014 that would have given amnesty to about 4 million illegal immigrants but was blocked by federal courts before its full implementation.[59]
  • June 21, 2017—President Trump signed an executive order, rescinding a guideline signed by former President Obama to speed up vetting times for people seeking visas, in order to improve vetting standards.[60]
  • June 23, 2017—The DOJ threw its support behind Texas's sanctuary city ban that was challenged in court.[61]
  • June 30, 2017—It was reported that the Trump Administration was cracking down on illegal immigrant parents who paid to have their children smuggled into the United States.[62]

Other achievements

Drop in illegal immigration, early 2017

Illegal immigration declined dramatically after Trump took office.[63][64] According to data released early in Trump's presidency, illegal border crossings decreased by 40% in the first month of Trump's presidency – a remarkable achievement, considering that illegal immigration usually increases by 10 to 20% in January and February.[65][66] In March, illegal immigration had fallen by over 60%.[67] By Trump's 100th day in office, levels were reported to have fallen by 73%.[68][69] The declining trend of border apprehensions (an indicator of the level of illegal immigration) continued through May.[70] It was reported in April that illegal immigration levels had fallen to the lowest point in 17 years.[69][71][72]

It was reported in May that the number of child illegal immigrants entering the nation monthly had fallen below 1,000, the first time in several years, and that total illegal immigration levels had fallen by 76%.[73] In six months, the illegal immigration of Haitians, specifically, into the U.S. declined by 97%.[74] Although not solely due to President Trump, illegal immigration from Cuba dropped dramatically in the beginning of Trump's presidency.[75] Illegal immigration dropped so much that U.S. Customs and Border Protection was able to close one of their temporary holding facilities.[76] As another illustration, a non-profit shelter organization for illegal immigrants, Southwest Key Programs, was forced to lay off nearly 1,000 of its employees due to the drop.[77] This drop was probably due to the Trump effect[63][78][79] and tougher illegal immigration and deportation policies by the Homeland Security Department.[80][81]

Drop in refugee admissions, early 2017

Regarding refugees, it was reported in May 2017 that the number of refugees entering the U.S. had sharply fallen from the peak during the Obama Administration.[82] According to DHS numbers released in June 2017, the number of refugees admitted in the first three months of Trump's presidency was half of that of the last three months of Obama's presidency (even though refugee admissions increased at the end of Obama's presidency).[83] Although the number of refugees admitted in May increased, the proportion of Muslim refugees declined from 34 to 28 percent compared to April.[84]

References

  1. ↑ Mason, Ian (April 27, 2017). New Sheriff in Town: The First 100 Days at the Sessions DOJ. Breitbart News. Retrieved April 27, 2017.
  2. ↑ Noble, Andrea (April 27, 2017). Sessions helps stabilize volatile Justice Department in first 100 days. The Washington Times. Retrieved April 27, 2017.
  3. ↑
  4. ↑ NYT: Immigration Hard-Liners Rising in Trump Administration. Breitbart News. April 24, 2017. Retrieved April 24, 2017.
  5. ↑
  6. ↑
  7. ↑ Hayward, John (January 30, 2017). Corruption, Terrorism, and Genocide: The 7 Nations Covered by Trump Executive Order. Breitbart News. Retrieved March 30, 2017.
  8. ↑ Toosi, Nahal (January 27, 2017). Trump bars Syrian refugees, halts entry of citizens from some Muslim states. Politico. Retrieved January 27, 2017.
  9. ↑ Paletta, Damian; Sonne, Paul; Schwartz, Felicia (January 27, 2017). Donald Trump Signs Actions Banning Syrians, Suspending Refugee Program. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved January 27, 2017.
  10. ↑ Executive Order 13769 of January 27, 2017 -- Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States. Federal Register. February 1, 2017. Retrieved May 7, 2017.
  11. ↑ Hayward, John (January 27, 2017). Trump: Christian Refugees ‘Horribly Treated,’ ‘We Are Going to Help Them’. Breitbart. Retrieved January 27, 2017.
  12. ↑ Kahn, Chris (January 31, 2017). Exclusive: Only a third of Americans think Trump's travel ban will make them more safe. Reuters. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  13. ↑ Most Support Temporary Ban on Newcomers from Terrorist Havens. January 2017. Retrieved February 2, 2017.
  14. ↑ Shaw, Adam (February 9, 2017). Majority of Europeans in favor of a Trump-style Muslim ban, poll shows. Fox News. Retrieved February 9, 2017.
  15. ↑ Jamieson, Alastair (February 8, 2017). Majority in Leading EU Nations Support Trump-Style Travel Ban: Poll. NBC News. Retrieved February 9, 2017.
  16. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named HomanICE
  17. ↑
  18. ↑
  19. ↑
  20. ↑ Munro, Neil (March 6, 2016). Donald Trump Signs Executive Order Banning Travel from Six Terror-Tied Countries. Breitbart. Retrieved March 6, 2017.
  21. ↑ Chakraborty, Barnini (March 6, 2017). Trump signs new immigration order, narrows scope of travel ban. Fox News. Retrieved March 6, 2017.
  22. ↑ Trump travel ban to go into effect: Timeline of a legal journey. Fox News. June 28, 2017. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
  23. ↑ Conservatives criticized the fact that it was a partial reinstatement rather than a full reinstatement: The Trump Administration moved to establish a narrow interpretation of the Court's "bona-fide relationship" it mandated when implementing the ban's partial reinstatement: It went into effect on June 29:
  24. ↑ Sessions seeks to speed up deportation of illegal immigrants in federal facilities. Fox News. March 30, 2017. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  25. ↑ Kew, Ben (March 31, 2017). AG Jeff Sessions Unveils Program to Accelerate Deportation of Imprisoned Illegals. Breitbart News. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  26. ↑
  27. ↑ Singman, Brooke (April 11, 2017). AG Sessions vows to confront cartels, gangs on visit to US-Mexico border. Fox News. Retrieved April 11, 2017.
  28. ↑
  29. ↑
  30. ↑ Binder, John (April 18, 2017). H-1B Experts on Trump’s Order: ‘This Is What We Elected Him For’. Fox News. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  31. ↑ Binder, John (April 14, 2017). Immigration Hawks Ascend to Senior DHS Positions. Breitbart News. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
  32. ↑ Derespina, Cody (April 18, 2017). Trump: Illegal immigrant criminals are 'getting the hell out'. Fox News. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  33. ↑ DHS' Kelly defends more ICE, border hires; says illegal immigrants must be 'dealt with'. Fox News. April 16, 2017. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
  34. ↑
  35. ↑ Rappaport, Nolan (May 5, 2017). On illegal immigration, Trump ends Obama's 'home free magnet'. The Hill. Retrieved May 6, 2017.
  36. ↑ This could be illustrated in the case of Somoli illegals:
  37. ↑ Dinan, Stephen (May 8, 2017). DHS speeds high-profile deportations; Democrats call changes ‘mean-spirited’. The Washington Times. Retrieved June 2, 2017.
  38. ↑ 38.0 38.1 Mason, Ian (May 8, 2017). ICE Announces Crackdown on Congressional Interference with Deportations. Breitbart News. Retrieved May 8, 2017.
  39. ↑ Binder, John (May 11, 2017). ICE: No More Deportation Halts from Amnesty Proposals. Breitbart News. Retrieved May 11, 2017.
  40. ↑ Gibson, Jake (May 9, 2017). 'Additional vetting' already happening, DHS officials say. Fox News. Retrieved May 9, 2017.
  41. ↑ For example:
  42. ↑
  43. ↑ Farivar, Masood (June 23, 2017). US Takes MS-13 Gang Fight to Its Root Countries. Voice of America. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
  44. ↑ Price, Bob (May 16, 2017). ICE Looks to Avoid Media Distortions with Spanish Language Website. Breitbart News. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
  45. ↑ ICE expands digital presence with Spanish website, Twitter -- News Releases. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. May 15, 2017. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
  46. ↑ Price, Bob (May 14, 2017). Border Patrol Agents Seize Massive Amounts of Drugs After Migrant Crossings Drop. Breitbart News. Retrieved May 14, 2017.
  47. ↑ Dinan, Stephen (May 17, 2017). Free of Obama restraints, immigration agents make 38% more arrests in Trump’s first 100 days. The Washington Times. Retrieved May 17, 2017.
  48. ↑ Price, Bob (May 17, 2017). ICE Arrests Up 40 Percent Under Trump. Breitbart News. Retrieved May 18, 2017.
  49. ↑ Munro, Neil (June 29, 2017). DHS John Kelly Slams Congress For Undermining Immigration Law, Touts 66,000 Illegals Arrested. Breitbart News. Retrieved June 30, 2017.
  50. ↑ Dinan, Stephen (May 16, 2017). Trump presses more countries take back U.S. deportees in immigration success. The Washington Times. Retrieved May 17, 2017.
  51. ↑ Price, Bob (June 16, 2017). Illegal Alien Support Group Forces Border Patrol to Get Warrants. Breitbart News. Retrieved June 18, 2017.
  52. ↑
  53. ↑ Price, Bob (April 14, 2017). Trump and Kelly ‘Dismantle’ Obama’s ‘Progress’ for Illegal Immigrants. Breitbart News. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
  54. ↑ Trump Administration’s First Immigrant Detention Center Goes Up in Texas. Breitbart News. April 15, 2017. Retrieved April 15, 2017.
  55. ↑
  56. ↑
  57. ↑
  58. ↑ Munro, Neil (June 13, 2017). DHS Shuts Down Anti-Deportation Office. Breitbart News. Retrieved June 13, 2017.
  59. ↑
  60. ↑
  61. ↑
  62. ↑ Bowden, John (June 30, 2017). Trump admin cracks down on parents who paid to smuggle children into US. The Hill. Retrieved June 30, 2017.
  63. ↑ 63.0 63.1 Lajeunesse, William; Prabucki, Laura (May 11, 2017). Trump's tough immigration rhetoric slows illegal border crossings: 'We're at a trickle'. Fox News. Retrieved May 11, 2017.
  64. ↑ Bogan, Ray (June 9, 2017). Border Patrol arrests in 2017 break historical trend. Fox News. Retrieved June 10, 2017.
  65. ↑ Illegal border crossings decrease by 40 percent in Trump's first month, report says. Fox News. March 9, 2017. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  66. ↑ Illegal border crossings from Mexico down 40%. Breitbart News. March 9, 2017. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  67. ↑
  68. ↑ Nolan, Lucas (April 29, 2017). Trump: ‘Illegal Immigration Down by Unprecedented 73%’. Breitbart News. Retrieved April 30, 2017.
  69. ↑ 69.0 69.1 Valverde, Miriam (April 25, 2017). Is illegal immigration the lowest in 17 years, as Trump said? PolitiFact. Retrieved April 30, 2017.
  70. ↑
  71. ↑ L.A. Times: Southwest Border Crossings at ‘Lowest Point in at Least 17 Years’. Breitbart News. April 10, 2017. Retrieved April 11, 2017.
  72. ↑ Price, Bob (May 12, 2017). Mexican Border Apprehensions Hit 17-year Low. Breitbart News. Retrieved May 12, 2017.
  73. ↑ Dinan, Stephen; Noble, Andrea (May 9, 2017). Trump’s immigration enforcement helps slow illegal border crossings by 76%. The Washington Times. Retrieved May 9, 2017.
  74. ↑ Dinan, Stephen (April 16, 2017). Haitians get word of Trump crackdown, slow flow to border by 97%. The Washington Times. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
  75. ↑ Saavedra, Ryan (May 12, 2017). Cuban Migration Plummets to Zero in April. Breitbart News. Retrieved May 12, 2017.
  76. ↑ Price, Bob (February 15, 2017). Drop in Trump Era Border Crossings Shutters Detention Center. Breitbart News. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  77. ↑ Price, Bob (May 22, 2017). Migrant Shelter Lays Off 1,000 after Border Crossings Drop. Breitbart News. Retrieved May 22, 2017.
  78. ↑ Sessions: Border crossings down 60 percent due to 'Trump's strong leadership'. Fox News. March 30, 2017. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
  79. ↑ Brown, Ben (April 12, 2017). Border Patrol Union President: Illegal Immigration Decline ‘Strictly’ Due to Trump. Fox Business. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
  80. ↑ Gibson, Jake (May 9, 2017). Border apprehensions plummet as DHS touts enforcement push. Fox News. May 9, 2017. Retrieved May 9, 2017.
  81. ↑ Kasperowicz, Pete (May 23, 2017). DHS: 'Historic shift' in border crossings since Trump's executive order. Washington Examiner. Retrieved June 23, 2017.
  82. ↑
  83. ↑
  84. ↑ Leahy, Michael Patrick (June 2, 2017). Number of Refugees Admitted into U.S. Increased by Nineteen Percent in May, Slightly Fewer Are Muslim. Breitbart News. Retrieved June 2, 2017.
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