IMMIGRATIONTrump’s Lawless, Baseless Immigration Ban
President Trump signed a proclamation that, with few exceptions, bans nineteen nationalities from entering the United States, supposedly based on “security” concerns, and went into effect on June 9. The president claims that there is no way to vet these immigrants. Yet that is precisely what his consular officers and border officials were successfully doing for decades—up until June 9.
President Trump signed a proclamation on June 5 that, with few exceptions, bans nineteen nationalities from entering the United States, supposedly based on “security” concerns, and went into effect on June 9. The ban rejects the fundamental principle of US immigration law against discrimination between immigrants from different countries. It imposes devastating consequences on immigrants and foreign travelers, while severely harming their US citizen relatives, employers, and others. It also repudiates America’s principled tradition of welcoming immigrants fleeing theocracies and the worst socialist tyrannies.
The president claims that there is no way to vet these immigrants. Yet that is precisely what his consular officers and border officials were successfully doing for decades—up until June 9. Trump provides no evidence beyond innuendo that the disfavored peoples pose a security threat. Only one immigrant born in any of these countries has killed anyone in a terrorist attack since 1981, and these immigrants are less likely to commit crimes serious enough to warrant incarceration in the United States than US-born Americans.
As we warned at the time, the Supreme Court greenlit this power grab over the legal immigration system during Trump’s first term. Now the president is taking full advantage of it, doing grave damage to America in the process. Although there are some carve-outs, the exceptions only go to the extent that the government knows there is no imminent threat from these immigrants. This action is just the latest in President Trump’s unrelenting assault on legal immigrants to the United States. Over four years, the ban will bar about 120,000 immigrants and over half a million temporary travelers.
The Immigrants Targeted
President Trump’s proclamation divides his ban into two groups (“full” and “partial”). The only difference between them is that some guest workers and fiancés of US citizens can enter from the partial ban group. Everyone else from the partially banned countries is still banned.
· The “full” ban group (which still includes some exceptions): Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen.
· The “partial” ban group: Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.
Cubans would have the most legal permanent immigrants threatened by this action. With 30,524 likely banned over four years, they account for 25 percent of all immigrant visa applicants threatened. Yemenis and Iranians follow with about 17,000 immigrant visas threatened (~15 percent each).
