The numbers show that immigration is actually improving under Trump’s presidency, which may come as a shock to many.
Closer Look at Deportation
Years 2009-2016
Under Obama’s presidency, annual ICE deportations were over 375,000 in the years 2009-2011, then hitting an all-time high of 409,849 deportations in the year 2012.
These numbers fell below 250,000 deportations in the years 2015 and 2016.
Years 2017 on
In 2017, under President Trump, ICE deportations fell under 230,000.
In 2018 these numbers rose just above 250,000.
Early 2019 (as of June) Trump administration hit their highest point of over 280,000 deportations.
While the reality is much better than most could have expected, the Trump Administration still has more plans for 2020. One of the biggest includes a series of ICE raids across the country which began in July of this year.
The Wall
Perhaps one of the largest promises by President Trump is to complete building the wall along the U.S. border with Mexico. Trump also promised that Mexico would have to pay for the wall of face changes to the U.S.A. Patriot Act, which would put an end to allowing immigrants to send money home to Mexico through Western Union money transfers. According to the Mexican central bank they received around $25 billion from abroad transfers. While it hasn’t been released how much of this is from U.S. immigrants, this change would undoubtedly cause a very large change in the Mexican economy.
This promise never came to fruition. Instead, Trump asked Congress to delegate $25 billion of the 2019 budget towards the cause, with yet another promise of asking Mexico to pay for it at later. Trump was offered $1.3 billion to maintain current border security which led to Trump stating he will be vetoing any budget bill offering less than $5.7 billion in funding towards the wall. This statement led to the shutdown of nine federal government departments for 30+ days.
To prevent further government shutdowns, Congress later approved a package that included $1.375 billion to build 55 miles of new border fencing. This package also provided 1.7 billion to Homeland Security’s budget for additional border security.
Welfare and Undocumented Immigrants
Another hot topic under Trump Administration is Welfare for undocumented immigrants. Trump stated early in his presidency,
“The time has come for new immigration rules that say ... those seeking immigration into our country must be able to support themselves financially and should not use welfare for a period of at least five years.”
This would remove the ability for states to decide who is eligible to receive welfare. In addition, Trump planned to implement regulations that deny immigration status to those who may become “public charges” within their first five years in the country.
H-1B Visas
On April 18, 2017, President Trump signed an executive order to change the H-1B visa program. This change would ensure that only highly-skilled immigrants would receive visas. Trump’s reasoning is that he doesn’t want visas to be given to foreign workers who are paid less than they would make in the U.S. This may take years for the H-1B program to be reviewed, so there have been no recent updates about this.
Maney | Gordon | Zeller Can Help
We live in an era where immigration laws are constantly changing. It’s important to understand your rights and be sure you know who to speak with in the event that these rights have been breached. At Maney | Gordon | Zeller, our team of board-certified attorneys has been helping individuals to continue chasing their dreams for over 40 years. We will ensure you receive the best possible outcome for your case!
Call us today (800) 708-4399 to learn what we can do for you over a free, confidential case evaluation.
