To better prepare for a second term under Donald Trump, one must review the results of the first. Appearing recently on Fox News, former acting director of ICE Tom Homan, Trump’s so-called “border czar,” stated the coming second administration will be like his first term “but with more deportations.” During his first term, Trump promised mass deportations, too – and then backpedaled, and then tried to carry it out anyway. In 2016 Trump vacillated from his public statement regarding mass deportation, stating he “would not characterize his immigration policies as including mass deportations” in June, but by August, Trump had laid out a hardline 10-step plan, repeating that “anyone who has entered the United States illegally is subject to deportation.” It seems this time he has dropped the pretense, as mass deportation became central to his second campaign. Trump’s first term featured policies such as the family separation policy, the Muslim ban, and a 450-foot wall on the 1,922.8-mile long southern border. Homan has said more workplace raids, another common feature of Trump’s first term, are expected once Trump takes office in January.
Despite his bluster, during his presidency, the number of undocumented immigrants deported decreased drastically. This is despite conducting hundreds of workplace raids and removal orders sent to families. He managed to deport more than 1.5 million people during his four years in office, according to Kathleen Bush-Joseph, policy analyst at the Migration Policy Institute, as stated in an interview with CNN. This number is on par with the 1.49 million deported under Biden, a figure that does not include the millions turned away at the border under a Trump policy dating back to COVID that was used during most of Biden’s term. Some factors that reduced the number of deportations were a result of their political focus – where Biden focused on the border, Trump figures include more deportations from within the country, as he widened his dragnet by prioritizing the deportation of everyone in the country illegally instead of those deemed public safety threats. “It’s going to be the same as it was during the first administration, it’s just a hell of a lot more of them because 10 million people are getting in this country illegally under the Biden administration,” Homan said on Fox News.
Be very careful!
Beware of notaries, immigration consultants or anyone who is not qualified and prepared in these matters. Always seek the advice and services of an immigration attorney for your immigration processes and procedures.