Category: Children - THIS WEEK IN IMMIGRATION

July 12, 2020, Sunday Shows Wrap-Up

7/12/2020

Little Discussion about Immigration Occurred on This Weekend's Sunday Morning
Public Affairs Programs

Sunday, July 12, 2020

Click the Play Button, above, to see excerpts of instances in which the subjects of immigration or xenophobia were discussed during the July 12, 2020, Sunday public affairs programs.

For the third consecutive week, news coverage of the intensifying COVID-19 pandemic and of the 2020 presidential campaign crowded out coverage of almost any other issue on the five top Sunday public affairs news programs, leaving little room for any discussions or comments about immigration, refugees, xenophobia on the July 12, 2020 editions of those programs.

The only mentions alluding to immigration, immigrants, or xenophobia during the programs this week came from the panel on FOX's Fox News Sunday, which commented on President Trump's confusing announcement on a forthcoming executive action he plans to take on immigration and DACA; and NBC's Kristen Welker, who commented on President Trump's base's support for building the wall.

A summary of the discussions that took place during the July 12, 2020, editions of the Sunday morning public affairs programs, along with a link to video of those discussions, follows:

Trump Floats Immigration/DACA Executive Action

7/11/2020

President Trump Promises a Forthcoming Executive Action on Immigration and DACA

Saturday, July 11, 2020

Click the Play Button, above, to see video of President Trump's remarks.

President Trump on Friday floated a somewhat confusing picture of an executive action on immigration he is considering taking in the coming weeks. At times he called the forthcoming action as a bill that he would sign. At other times he referred to it as an executive order. And at still other times he referred to it as an executive order bill. The President also at times suggested that the action would include a "road to citizenship" for individuals protected by the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. But he also in the same sentence indicated that the action would not include any protections for persons currently protected by DACA. The President's remarks were made during a wide-ranging Friday, July 10, 2020, interview with Telemundo's Jose Diaz-Balart. The exchange between them on immigration was previewed Friday evening on MSNBC's "Meet the Press Daily,"

In the exchange with Diaz-Balart on immigration, President Trump alternately said that he is about to sign either "a big immigration bill" or a "big executive order" or a "major immigration bill as an executive order" that will give DACA beneficiaries "a road to citizenship," a power that he erroneously contended the Supreme Court had just given him.

In the excerpt, the President contends of DACA and his promised executive action, "we will put it in" and then "we are probably then going to be taking it out," explaining that "we are working out the legal complexities right now."

Court Rulings Place Immigration in Spotlight

6/28/2020

Five Recent Court Rulings on Immigration Place the Subject in the Judicial Spotlight

Sunday, June 28, 2020

For nearly two years, immigration stakeholders and policymakers awaited action in the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) on the legality of the Trump Administration's September 2017 attempt to end the popular Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA). As late June of 2020 approached, the pro-immigrant advocacy community braced itself for what it thought would certainly be a decision affirming the Administration's authority to rescind DACA. However, in a totally unexpected decision, on Thursday, June 18, 2020, SCOTUS ruled that the Administration improperly moved to rescind DACA, saving, for now at least, the hundreds of thousands of young people brought to the United States illegally while they were children.

The long-awaited SCOTUS DACA decision was just one of five consequential decisions issued by SCOTUS and lower federal courts on immigration matters in recent days.

June 21, 2020, Sunday Shows Wrap-Up

6/21/2020

Discussions about Immigration and Xenophobia Occur on All Five of This Weekend's Major Sunday
Morning Public Affairs Programs

Sunday, June 21, 2020

Click the Play Button, above, to see excerpts of instances in which the subjects of immigration or xenophobia were discussed during the June 21, 2020, Sunday public affairs programs.

News coverage of the events surrounding the killing of George Floyd and Rayshard Brooks at the hands of police officers in Minneapolis, Minnesota and Atlanta, Georgia, and the widespread protests and civil unrest that those killings spawned, have continued to dominate news coverage on the cable news networks and in newspapers across the country. Notwithstanding that, however, because of last Thursday's decision of the Supreme Court of the United States that temporarily blocked the Trump Administration from rescinding the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program (DACA), there was plenty of talk about immigration and xenophobia during the June 21, 2020, editions. of the five most prominent Sunday morning public affairs programs.

Among those discussing, mentioning, or alluding to immigration, immigrants, or xenophobia during the programs this week were Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf, ABC News's Cecilia Vega, Trump campaign Aide Mercedes Schlapp, Republican strategist Al Cardenas, and Trump economic advisor Peter Navarro.

A summary of the discussions that took place during the June 21, 2020, Sunday morning public affairs programs, along with a link to video of those discussions, follows:

Trump Suggests Another Try to End DACA Program

6/20/2020

Trump Suggests He Will Try Again in the
Coming Days to Rescind DACA

Saturday, June 20, 2020

Click the Play Button, above, to see excerpts from the June 19, 2020 White House press briefing, during which the White House press Secretary responds to questions about DACA.

President Donald J. Trump and members of his Administration on Friday suggested that, notwithstanding a decision against him by the Supreme Court of the United States (the Court), his Administration will soon make another attempt to rescind a popular program that has protected as many as 800,000 young persons who have lived in the United States most of their lives after being brought illegally to the country as children. The President implied that he would soon act to bring the program to an end the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) via a series of posts on Twitter, a widely used microblogging platform, and his suggestion was reinforced later in the day by the White House Press Secretary.

SCOTUS Prohibits Trump Attempt to Rescind DACA

6/18/2020

Supreme Court Rules that Trump Improperly Attempted to Rescind the DACA Program,
Allowing it to Continue in Effect For Now

Thursday, June 18, 2020

Chief Justice Roberts

In a totally unexpected decision, the Supreme Court of the United States has ruled that the Trump Administration improperly moved to rescind an Obama-era program that has protected hundreds of thousands of young people brought to the United States illegally while they were children, permitting the program to continue, for now. The Court issued its 5-4 opinion, written by Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr, on Thursday, June 18, 2020, throwing the ball into the hands of the Trump Administration to decide if it will make another attempt to end the popular program.

The Administration has the option of trying again right away to bring the program to an end, waiting until after the election to do so, or permitting the program to continue in place for the remainder of the Trump presidency.

Joining the Chief Justice in the 5-4 decision were the four Court liberals, Associate Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Steven G. Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elana Kagan.

In the ruling, Roberts wrote that the Administration violated the Administrative Procedures Act when it attempted to rescind the program, saying that it did not properly weigh how ending the program would affect those who had come to rely on its protections against deportation, and the ability to work legally. He wrote in his opinion that the Administration had not "complied with the procedural requirement that it provide a reasoned explanation for its action. Here the agency failed to consider the conspicuous issues of whether to retain forbearance and what if anything to do about the hardship to DACA recipients. That dual failure raises doubts about whether the agency appreciated the scope of its discretion or exercised that discretion in a reasonable manner.”

May 25, 2020 Legislative Preview

5/25/2020

A Light Schedule of Immigration-Related Business Likely During the Week Ahead as Policy Watchers Await Supreme Court Decision on DACA

Monday, May 25, 2020

Little legislative action on immigration is expected to take place during the week beginning May 25, 2020.. The Senate is out of town for its week-long Memorial Day recess, leaving the House behind for a workweek that is abbreviated by Memorial Day on Monday and a quick exit upon the close of business on Thursday.

Notwithstanding the relatively light work week, however, the eyes of immigration stakeholders and policy watchers will be fixed across the street from the U.S. Capitol Building as they await a possible decision from the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) on the legality of President Trump's efforts to shutdown the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

In all, from the perspective of those interested in immigration, refugee, homeland security, or human trafficking policy, the week's schedule includes two hearings or briefings (both occurring in the House), no markups, and just one scheduled floor action (also occurring in the House) on matters of consequence.

House COVID-19 Legislative Package

5/16/2020

House Passes $3 Trillion COVID-19 Legislative Package Containing Provisions Providing Relief to Immigrants and other Migrants in the United States

Saturday, May 16, 2020

Speaker Pelosi

The House of Representatives has passed a sweeping $3 Trillion COVID-19 Relief Package that contains among its many provisions several that would provide relief to immigrants and other migrants in the United States who have been negatively impacted by the disease. The House-passed measure constitutes a reversal of fortunes for immigrant advocates compared to previously enacted COVID-19 bills that ignored the needs of immigrants. However, at best, the House-passed measure and its immigration provisions face a difficult future in the Senate and a veto threat from the White House.

This week's House COVID-19 relief action occurred on Friday, May 15, 2020, in connection with H.R. 6800 , the "Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act or the HEROES Act". The House acted late in the evening on Friday, passing the measure by a 208-199 vote after narrowly rejecting an effort to reverse one of the measure's key immigrant relief provisions.

As passed by the House H.R. 6800 contains provisions providing for the issuance of stimulus payments to households that include unauthorized migrants; extensions of status for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and Temporary Protected Status (TPS) beneficiaries; extensions of expired and expiring employment authorization documents (EADs); roll-over of unused visas into future years; relief from detention for certain immigration detainees; heightened detention standards for immigration detainees; eased immigrant and nonimmigrant pathways for foreign-born medical professionals; access to COVID-19 testing and treatment without regard to immigration status; and remote naturalization oath.