Following a clear victory for his travel ban in the Supreme Court earlier this week, the Trump administration appears ready to take the offensive in dealing with the problem of illegal immigration. The 5-4 decision reached by the Court not only upheld the ban, but also indicated that the president has broad powers under present immigration law, when he is acting to protect national security.
On Tuesday, President Trump reportedly told some members of Congress that the country’s immigration laws should be pretty simple: “It’s called, you can’t come in.”
“A reporter with Bloomberg added that Trump told congressional members that the present laws of the United States concerning immigration policy are a “hodgepodge.”
When reporters asked the president if he now planned to move forward on his travel ban, Trump said, “Of course,” adding that the Supreme Court is the “final word.” This does not mean that Trump is saying the Supreme Court is some sort of super-legislature, but that opponents of his travel ban no longer have a way to use the federal court system to stop it.
Meanwhile, Vice President Mike Pence is scheduled to meet with the presidents of Guatemala and Honduras in Guatemala to discuss immigration on the U.S.-Mexican border. Pence is presently in Brazil and was scheduled to meet with victims of a recent volcano eruption in the central American nation of Guatemala. Kirstjen Nielsen, secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, is expected to join Pence in the discussions.
This is clearly a step by Pence and Trump to dry up the immigration problem at its source. While Mexican citizens continue to provide a large source of illegal entry into the United States, most of the recent events in the news at the border concerning “family separations” have involved Honduran and Guatemalan refugees and alleged refugees.
If something could be done to prevent Guatemalans, Hondurans, and other residents of Central America from making their way north through Mexico, they would not even be at the U.S. border. Presently, Mexico does little to nothing to assist the United States in this problem, and in fact, the new president of Mexico has announced it will be his government’s policy to promote the emigration of thousands of his country’s citizens into the United States, as the income earned by these residents of Mexico in the United States continues to be an important element in the economy of Mexico.
Some may argue that Trump’s desired immigration policy of “I’m sorry you can’t come in” is just too simple. But as part of a collection of reforms — including getting the cooperation of foreign governments such as Honduras and Guatemala — it will make a huge difference. It is certainly more effective than what has been done before Trump.
With rising approval ratings, and the favorable ruling out of the Supreme Court, it appears the president now has the wind at his back.
Photo: AP Images
