Understanding the debates on Immigration and Deportation in USA with a Special Emphasis on the Trump Administration
Note:- This article is solely for the purpose of education and awareness.
Immigration has always remained a controversial political issue across the world in recent times, especially in the West. The 2024 US elections had the discussion of immigration as one of the central narratives. At its heart was the debate on Illegal immigration. This issue was successful in bringing down the Biden Administration so badly that even Democrats lost the popular vote and all the swing states.
The words Illegal immigrants and Undocumented immigrants were talked about extensively largely indicating that both are kind of the same. But no, both of them are different as well as very indicate two very different aspects. The undocumented and illegal immigrants are not the same. Even media, social media and people use it interchangeably to suit their narratives. Undocumented immigrants are those who are foreign-born people who do not possess valid immigration documentation, or even for the fact that they are staying beyond the valid period. Illegal is used to rather indicate their unlawful status.
Then you have the Asylum seekers who are legal in the US if they report to any port of entry to USA. At the time of your entry to the USA, you can declare your request for asylum on the grounds of persecution based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion and even being part of a social group such as LGBTQ. Here proof of persecution and valid documents should be provided. These documents will be checked by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services and the Immigration courts. Legal immigrants can also apply for asylum within a year which is called affirmative asylum. This process is handled by the US Dept. for Homeland Security (DHS). While all the courts will come under the Dept. of Justice (DOJ). Asylum is a legal right under both U.S. law and international law.
People can also come to the USA after applying as Refugees outside the US soil through the UN Refugee programmes and other international conventions. By law, criminals, terrorists or anyone who can be a potential threat to the US cannot apply for Asylum.
Deportation Processes in the USA
Is Immigration a crime? In the last article, we already discussed extensively the disadvantages of the Westphalian nation-state model and how your right to movement is hurt. Although your right to immigrate is recognised, it comes with a lot of conditions and restrictions. All these laws vary from country to country. So let us closely examine what US laws talk about migration and immigration, especially illegal immigration.
In the US, illegal immigration is largely a civil offence. This means if you overstay in the US without adequate documentation, it's merely a civil violation but still you may be asked to pay a fine and would still be liable for deportation. But on the other hand, crossing the border into the US is illegal and is termed as a misdemeanour and you can serve up to six months in jail followed by a deportation procedure. If you are a repeat offender or you are trying to cross the border illegally once more then you are committing a crime or a federal offence (felony). This means you will get up to two years of imprisonment and your cases will be handled in the federal courts.
Deportation is the process of removing a non-citizen from a foreign country to the home country for violating immigration law(s). The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) is one of the most important laws that deals with the same. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) wing of the DHS looks after this process. ICE and CBP have jurisdiction only within 100 miles of the US border and beyond which other federal and local law enforcement agencies have the jurisdiction. Beyond which ICE requires warrants to function and conduct raids.
Deportation has three stages: Identification, Arrest, and Notice for Appearance, as well as the Immigration Court procedure. Those who are arrested in Detention Centres, undergo trials in Immigration courts before the verdict is given. Additionally, the immigrant is also given the option to leave by themself but generally, it is done by bilateral arrangements with the home countries. It is to be noted that all forms of immigrants cannot be deported. In the US, there are three types of deportations- commercial flights, Chartered flights and lastly land/sea deportation in the case of close neighbours.
The Issues and Debates on Immigration in the Current Times
There are close to 11 million illegal Immigrants in the United States which is one of the highest in the world. However, the peak was in 2007 during the George Bush era. Under successive presidential terms later on saw a massive reduction only to rise once again in the post-pandemic scenario. In 2015, Donald Trump championed the debate on immigration and made one of the most important issues that he campaigned on for the 2016 elections and won the elections. He came out then with controversial moves such as the Muslim Travel ban targeting travellers from a handful of Muslim Majority countries. His promise of building the border wall across Mexico and making it pay for the same has not yet happened. However, the debate on Illegal Immigration became an issue in the 2024 elections, with the extraordinary amount of inflow of migrants from the Southern Border which skyrocketed in the 2022-23 period. The U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021, passed under the Biden Administration was aimed at providing a pathway for citizenship for undocumented migrants as well as increasing the funding for border management, clearing VISA backlogs, and much more.
Title 42
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Trump Administration imposed Title 42 of a 1944 public health law to prevent the entry of migrants for three years. This includes the halting of the entire asylum process with minor exceptions. On May 13th, 2023, the new Biden Administration ended the COVID-19 emergency in the country, ending Title 42. For more than a year, he was working towards removing the same for a long period of time but couldn't due to the legal loops created by Republicans. But as soon as Title 42 was lifted, the country saw an extensive inflow of migrants of all types which became a massive election issue.
Bipartisan Border Bill
With impassage of the earlier bill as mentioned before, there was a new initiative to tackle the problem. In early 2024, both Republicans and Democrats mainly from the Senate came forward with a bill which could have been an apt solution US immigration problem. Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) took the lead in drafting and presenting the bill which he regarded as one of the toughest border bills in history. There were provisions in the bill that called for the automatic closure of the border by DHS if the crossings went over 5000 a day. It called for the mandatory detention of Asylum Seekers during the application process in addition to hiring more asylum officials and immigration judges. Lastly, this bill would have increased the funding for border patrolling, buying equipment and hiring the needed staff.
This bill despite having strong support among both parties across the aisle as well as in both houses of Congress failed to pass after Donald Trump called for not supporting this bill. This was because he and his party wanted to use immigration as a tool to win the elections. He wanted to make sure that this crisis remained unsolved putting the Biden Administration in bad light. This forced Republicans from both the House and Senate to withdraw their support from the bill. Republican Senator James Lankford, from Oklahoma (one of the reddest states) had affirmed that this bill would have solved the immigration problem.
Closing the border
Given that the bill failed, border crises remained unresolved for a long time. On June 4th, with the mounting pressure from all sides, Joe Biden through an executive order closed down the (parts of the) Southern border which suspended the asylum process as well. This brought down the immigration levels to a record low. However, the rhetoric of Trump and the Republican Party continued. With this decision, the border crossings dropped to a lesser than in any year under the Trump 1.0 Presidency.
Why are Immigrants coming to the USA and largely the reasons for illegal immigration?
American Dream
For the longest period of history, the USA tried to brand itself as the land of immigrants and immigration and that it is also the land of opportunities. This is directly related to the establishment of European colonies in the region and how immigration even today has made the country one of the best countries in the world. Even today that idea hasn't changed a lot. There are millions of people across the world even today in the third world who wish to come and settle in the US and have a decent life which they believe would be much better than their current situation. Hollywood, pop culture, social media and the US soft power were successful in conveying this message. Throughout the Cold War US tried to use this image to counter the USSR on this matter.
Republican party's stance on Immigration historically
Historically it has been the Republican party who were traditionally more pro-immigration and free trade. Shocked? Yes. Founded as a progressive party, starting from leaders such as Abraham Lincoln and George W Bush were all strongly pro-immigration. They viewed immigration as it is essential for economic growth, and cheap and skilled labour. The Johnson-Reed Act, of 1924 was an exception where the Republican party went back a bit on the same.
It was Ronald Reagen who was the main champion of being the most pro-immigration Republican leader who granted amnesty to 3 M undocumented immigrants and wanted them to be part of the mainstream US system. George H W Bush went one step further by introducing Temporary Protection Status [TPS] for migrants coming from crisis-hit nations. His son George W Bush and VP Dick Cheney wanted to expand the integration of undocumented immigrants into the system but the 9/11 attack in 2001 started to make a seismic shift in the ideology of the party which started to become more anti-immigration. This was reflected in Trump 1.0 which saw the separation of families at the border, Muslim travel ban and trying to sabotage the asylum process. Even today the party is deeply divided on both legal and illegal immigration
On the other hand, it was the Democratic Party that has been traditionally more anti-immigration due to the issues of racism, slavery and being pro-working class. Franklin D Roosevelt is well criticised for his anti-immigration policies. It was John F Kennedy and Lyndon B Johnson who made a massive overhaul in the stance of Democrats on the issue making it more diverse and pro-immigration. This continues till today when Democrats today are seen as the party of Immigration and Immigrants. While, Obama and Biden had a mixed record on immigration with record deportations in both of their tenure.
American Exceptionalism
The land of freedom, the land of opportunities etc. is what USA is well known today. This doesn't seem very randomly, but it's a deliberate attempt perpetrated by the ideology of American Exceptionalism. This ideology believes that the USA due to its unique socio-economic-political status is unique and has led to its success. This ideology was promoted during the Cold War extensively and helped it gain a status among the masses around the world that immigrating to the US is a worthwhile option.
Crisis in Latin America
Latin America for the longest period in history has been politically unstable and economically backward compared to the USA, hence it was very common for the people to move to the USA and Canada via Mexico. Well, this idea was not stopped but rather encouraged by the Republican Presidents and politicians. That is why today many of these Latino communities like in Florida support Republicans over Democrats. This movement has been copied by people across the world who land in South America, Mexico or even Canada and head towards the USA. This is known as known as the donkey route.
Trump's anti-immigrant rhetoric and policies
The 2024 election was largely surrounded by immigration and economic policies. Largely they might sounded like disconnected issues but no. Trump's biggest socio-economic constituency or the voter base is the white working class who are/were economically disadvantaged for a long time. Coming to their stance on immigration they believe that they are losing their jobs because of both legal and illegal immigration. This is where Trump's support largely comes from. Additionally, there are several conspiracy theories like the White Replacement theory and racism that have also in recent times become strongly anti-immigration.
His solutions to the problem include mass deportations such as sending back each and every illegal immigrant, ending asylum, stopping H1B visas, shutting the border, separating families at the border, ending birthright citizenship and much more. Many immigrants who traditionally used to vote Democratic had slightly moved towards Trump based on economic reasons but also believe that Trump's immigration policies will not affect them or are just a bluff.
In his first term, he had initially called for separation of families at the border which was marked with extensive outrage and chaos.
The Problems with Trump's Deportations
What is the central plank that Trump's politics is based on? The answer is anti-immigration and pro-white working-class rhetoric. He is convincing people that all the problems they face in their lives are due to immigrants. This was reflected in the 2024 campaign rhetoric where the legal Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio were made scapegoats. Later were the remarks against Puerto Ricans and lastly allegations against Indian-Americans in the H1B visa issue by MAGA supporters.
Donald Trump received his record number of votes in the 2024 election cycle with record support from immigrants too. Most of them believed that it was all for rhetoric and he may not actually do whatever he claimed. But the facts are exactly the opposite. Thus even ideas such as removing birthright citizenship which is guaranteed by the constitution.
Firstly, he is using it to throw out even legal immigrants like asylum seekers, etc. he doesn't care about all that legality or the way in which the US governance system has evolved till now. There are no solutions to fix the problem, it's largely the optics, proving to his constituency that he is a stern leader and acting on his promises. He expanded the "expedite process" where in the immigrants can be deported without taking them to the courts which happens within 100 miles of the border.
The main reason for illegal migration is how difficult the US has made it for people from third-world countries to come to the US. If you are educated and can speak, read and write English, the process is very easy. But without good education and English skills, it's tougher. The VISA fees, appointments, lack of documents and many other issues show that people like to take alternate routes like what happens in Latin American countries. Additionally, there are agents who charge hefty from different people and dupe people by forcing them to immigrate illegally without informing them. Then there is human trafficking which again traps vulnerable people.
Also, the basic idea of immigration and human population shifting has been the norm for a very long until the advent of the Westphalian System and the Rule-based order. So, people are moving across the world to have better lives. They cannot be considered as criminals. Largely it's not their choice too. We are very privileged of those who have good living standards, jobs, decent pay and other facilities (like you and me) to lecture others not to move abroad and have a decent life.
The biggest beneficiaries of undocumented and illegal immigration in the US were the unorganised sectors such as agriculture, construction, hospitality and domestic work. They are the consistent votebank of the Republican party and also the backbone of the red states. With mass deportations underway, these sectors are worst affected without any about. Believe it or not, undocumented and illegal immigrants contributed $96.7 B in taxes to the US government. There goes down the biggest disinformation is that illegal immigrants don't pay taxes. As of 2022, 8.3 Million people are employed in the workforce and the US economy will be worst affected by the deportations. Over 41% of ICE detainees have no criminal record and despite that, Trump has put them on the priority list for deportation.
Since Trump took charge on day one of the second term, has used his powers to declare a national emergency and bring the US troops to perform a law enforcement job which is fully done by the DOJ and DHS which is again an executive overreach and per se not a required step. The migrants are inhumanely treated, chained on arms and legs and used military aircraft to send them back to their home countries. This is mainly done for immigrants from third-world countries flouting all humanitarian, domestic and international norms and laws on deportation. Also, it's much more expensive to send people via a military aircraft than over a commercial aircraft. All the visuals of these were shamelessly shown on media for Trump's image building in front of his voting constituency.
Now, law enforcement can knock at your homes and get in and check, which again goes against the actual principles of the USA and the Republican party of small government. There were even allegations that US citizens speaking Spanish were suspected to be illegal immigrants and detained. These measures were not followed under the Obama and Biden administrations. Now, Trump administration plans a dangerous idea to open detention centres in Guantanamo Bay and other Latin American countries which preposterous.
Just like any group of people, there can be criminals amidst immigrants notably illegal immigrants given that they are not given legal or police clearance from their country home country. But that said, there is no clear-cut proof or any evidence to show they are criminals or they engage in crime more than the native population. This is true for both legal and illegal immigration. This is applicable to the rest of the world too compared to popular perceptions. Even then we have numbers coming from different sources saying that the rise in crime in various countries has nothing to do with increasing migration rates.
Myth Busters on the Issue
Republicans are very strict on Immigration
As we discussed this issue, we have had Republican Presidents historically taking very relaxed and liberal stance on immigration until recent times. In this context, Donald Trump is an aberration.
Democrats do not deport people
Even though that's the colloquial idea on immigration that Democrats are more welcoming, they have also been very harsh on Illegal immigrants by deporting them in record numbers during their tenure. Obama is nicknamed as "Deporter in chief". Biden holds the record for the biggest number of deportations conducted in a single year. Bill Clinton had also passed very strict immigration laws in his tenure.
Immigrants are criminals and deserve to be handcuffed and their human rights can be taken away
As discussed before, just overstaying and jumping the borders illegally are not criminals. Their human rights stay intact even if they are criminally convicted as well. Basic human rights are not only guaranteed by the constitutions of the respected countries but also by international laws. Only those who are charged with criminal offences and those who can create a dangerous situation can be handcuffed and can have their rights restricted.
Immigrants are responsible for crimes
From a common man's point of view, it makes sense that immigrants push up the crimes. This narrative increased during Trump's 2016 campaign season when he called Mexicans criminals. He also recently claimed they are eating cats and dogs, and that all the countries are emptying their jails and cells and letting them into the US. The fact is that you can see no evidence to all the claims and additionally immigrants both legal and illegal commit crimes at lower rates than the natives.
The future and the way forward
Today, we need to examine multiple sides and their arguments. We can agree that illegal immigration is an issue and we need to solve it. But what is the issue and how will we proceed on that? When MAGA supporters call for a larger continuation of the so-called "Mass Deportation". While activists and those who critique them call for much more of a humanitarian issue and solution that is required here. The treatment of those who are awaiting their documentation status should be fair and also the human rights of deportees should be protected by both the USA and the receiving countries. Additionally, there is a definitive consensus that there needs proper distinction between Asylum Seekers and Illegal immigrants. We need to have proper answers and proper processes which happen to political consensus within the USA. Most importantly restricting immigration at source ie. both pull and push factors is needed which was started by the Biden administration but hasn't resulted in effective results. Lastly, there needs to a proper immigration reform and a comeback of the bills which enhance funding of the border patrols, ICE and other federal agencies than to restrict them. A balanced approach is what we need.
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