What You Need to Know About Trump’s Executive Orders
Donald Trump’s onslaught of executive orders during his first 100 days of presidency has exceeded that of any other recent president. Mere hours after being sworn in, Trump signed the first of many controversial orders that would follow, aimed at reversing Obama’s Affordable Care Act. While Trump has signed over 40 executive orders, we are going to focus on the ones that affect immigrants in the United States. Continue reading to learn more.
Executive Order 36: Amending Executive Order 13597
What It Does: Removes a section from Obama’s “Establishing Visa and Foreign Visitor Processing Goals and the Task Force on Travel and Competiveness” that required 80% of nonimmigrant visa applicants to be interviewed within 3 weeks of receipt of application. The Trump administration stated that removing this section gives them more freedom to expand vetting for those who wish to enter the United States.
Who It Affects: It will likely extend the amount of time it takes for foreigners to receive nonimmigrant visas to the United States, although it is not known which individuals it will apply to.
Executive Order 11: On a Task Force on Crime Reduction and Public Safety
What It Does: Directs AG Jeff Sessions to form a task force in order to reduce illegal immigration, drug trafficking and other crimes.
Who It Affects: It allows Sessions to turn more offenses into federal crimes and more easily confiscate property and crack down on sanctuary jurisdictions, affecting illegal immigrants the most.
Executive Order 5: Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States
What It Does: Establishes “extreme vetting” of refugees, temporarily bans immigration and travel from a handful of Middle Eastern countries and stops refugees from all countries from entering the U.S. You may better know this executive order as the travel ban. While the first iteration was struck down, the “watered-down” version of the order is currently in effect.
Who It Affects: Refugees from all countries and immigrants from Syria, Libya, Iran, Yemen, Sudan and Somalia that don’t have a “bona fide” relationship in the United States. In total, the travel ban affects over 100 million people.
Executive Order 4: Border Security and Immigration Enforcement
What It Does: Calls for the planning, designing and building of the wall between the United States and Mexico in order to prevent illegal immigration. In addition to the wall, over 5,000 border patrol agents will be added, new detention centers will be opened and local police officers will be allowed to act as immigration officers. It also scraps “catch and release” in favor of more aggressive policies on undocumented immigration.
Who It Affects: More undocumented immigrants will be deported.
Executive Order 3: Enabling Public Safety in the Interior of the United States
What It Does: Orders authorities to review and cut money coming into “sanctuary cities” so that they will comply with federal immigration policies. It also gives more power to ICE and other authorities to penalize and remove undocumented immigrants. If certain countries refuse to take back their citizens, the executive order penalizes them.
Who It Affects: Undocumented immigrants and sanctuary cities such as Los Angeles, Denver, Austin, New York City, Miami and Chicago.
Want to know how President Trump’s many immigration executive orders may affect you or your loved ones? Reach out to our Los Angeles immigration attorneys from the Law Offices of Elsa Martinez immediately. We are just a phone call away.
Call (213) 985-4550 or contact us online to speak with an immigration attorney.