Trump: Deport Illegal Immigrants Immediately, No Court Hearings
VOA News/Ken Bredemeier
WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump called Sunday for immediately deporting illegal immigrants entering the United States with «no Judges or Court Cases.»
In a string of Twitter comments, Trump declared, «We cannot allow all of these people to invade our Country…,» contending that «Our system is a mockery to good immigration policy and Law and Order.»
The U.S. leader claimed that the U.S. immigration law is «laughed at all over the world, is very unfair to all of those people who have gone through the system legally and are waiting on line for years.»
The United States for years has granted court hearings to migrants fleeing from Mexico and Central American countries, and from elsewhere in the world, and looking for better economic fortunes in the United States.
Trump’s tough demand to end that legal process would face stiff opposition in Congress, which for years has been stalemated on changes to U.S. immigration policies and unable to enact new migration laws.
He said, «When somebody comes in, we must immediately, with no Judges or Court Cases, bring them back from where they came.»
He renewed his demand that «Immigration must be based on merit – we need people who will help to Make America Great Again!»
«Democrats, fix the laws. Don’t RESIST,» Trump said on Twitter. He declared that his administration is «doing a far better job» than that of former presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama in controlling illegal immigration, «but we need strength and security at the Border! Cannot accept all of the people trying to break into our Country. Strong Borders, No Crime!»
Rep. Luis Gutierrez, a Democrat from Illinois, argued his party needed to «fix the laws.»
“The Republicans are in charge of the House of Representatives. There are 240 of them. I am in the minority. They are in charge of the Senate. The Democrats are in the minority,» Gutierrez said.
«They [Republicans] control the White House. They control the administration. They control every facet of government. And yet they say: ‘Why do not the Democrats fix the problem?’” he said Sunday on ABC’s «This Week.»
Republican Senator Ron Johnson, chairman of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, told CNN, «This is a mess that goes back decades. We don’t have the capacity to handle all the migrants showing up» at the U.S. border.
The Trump administration on Wednesday reversed its controversial practice of separating detained children and parents at the border.
Federal officials say they have reunited more than 500 migrant children who were separated from their parents under Trump’s zero-tolerance policy for illegal entry into the United States.
“Our people are actually doing a very good job handling a very difficult situation. This is a problem that should have been solved years ago,» Trump said.
The president’s amended policy drew praise from allies on Capitol Hill.
“Let us keep families together, but let us not inadvertently or unintentionally reinstate the broken ‘catch-and-release’ policies, which simply serve as a magnet for more illegal immigration,» Republican Sen. John Cornyn said.
Democrats, meanwhile, continued to heap scorn on the policy.
“It makes no sense to throw the book at parents who come to the border with their kids because they are fleeing violence and death threats. There is no requirement, none, to prosecute every border case as a criminal case,» Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin said.
The Republican-controlled House of Representatives is still planning to vote this week on comprehensive immigration policy changes after last week defeating a tougher version of new immigration controls.
Trump supported both of the bills being considered by the House, but then said Republican lawmakers were wasting their time and should abandon the effort until after the November elections in hopes that Republicans would increase the majorities they hold in both chambers and would have an easier time passing immigration policy changes to their liking.
Democrats, however, have hopes of retaking control of at least one of the chambers, with U.S. analysts say they have a better chance of regaining control of the House, where all 435 seats are being contested.
Capitol Hill correspondent Michael Bowman contributed to this report.