The Trump administration sent its “Immigration Principles and Policies” report to Congress on Oct. 8, outlining priorities ranging from the border wall and undocumented alien children to sanctuary cities and merit-based immigration.
Border security received top billing, with “funding for the southern border wall and associated infrastructure” as the primary item. (In September, six contracting companies began constructing border wall prototypes. They include Caddell, ELTA North America, Fisher Sand & Gravel, KWR Construction, Texas Sterling Construction Co., and W.G. Yates & Sons Construction Co.)
The report also encouraged authorization for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) “to raise, collect, and use certain processing fees” to support “border security, physical infrastructure, and law enforcement.”
In addition, DHS noted loopholes in current law that prevent undocumented alien children (UAC) illegally in the country from being removed. “These loopholes in current law create a dramatic pull factor for additional illegal immigration and in recent years, there has been a significant increase in the apprehensions of UACs at our southern border,” the report noted. “Therefore, the administration proposes amending current law to ensure the expeditious return of UACs and family units.”
The administration also proposed a “merit-based immigration system” to protect U.S. taxpayers. “The current immigration system prioritizes extended family-based chain migration over skills-based immigration and does not serve the national interest,” the report continued. “Decades of low-skilled immigration has suppressed wages, fueled unemployment and strained federal resources.”
Other issues raised with the priority list include asylum reform, illegal reentry, sanctuary cities, gang issues, and improvements to visa security.
“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,” said acting DHS Secretary Elaine Duke in a statement released Oct. 8. “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.”
Read the White House report here.
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