In response to the surge in individuals making frivolous and fraudulent asylum claims, USCIS announced a proposed rule this week that would make it more difficult for these individuals to enter the U.S. and gain work authorization.
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case challenging President Trump's decision to end DACA. Most who sat in on the session anticipate that the Justices will side with the Administration. It remains to be seen whether or not the Court will rule on the constitutionality of President Obama's executive amnesty.
Over the last year, only eleven employers faced prosecution for the illegal hiring of unauthorized workers, according to a story last week in The New York Times.
President Trump announced on Thursday that the United States will impose a new tariff of 5% on all goods imported from Mexico. If illegal immigration through the southern U.S. border does not subside, the tariff will increase by 5% until it is capped at 25%.
President Trump has nominated Mark Morgan for the director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Morgan's nomination fills the place of Ronald Vitiello, whose nomination as ICE Director was withdrawn last month. Morgan will face a confirmation hearing in the Senate.
Customs and Border Protections officials this week announced that new biometric entry/exit technologies have allowed it to verify 57% more visa overstayers than the previous year. This is a significant step forward in the implementation of an entry/exit system first mandated by Congress in 1996.
Sens. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), David Perdue (R-Ga.), and Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) introduced the RAISE Act in the Senate. This is the same bill Sens. Cotton and Perdue introduced last Congress that would eliminate the visa lottery and chain migration, and would make employment visas merit-based. Rep. Rooney (R-Fla.) introduced a companion bill in the House.
Cardinal Robert Sarah, a top Vatican official who is sometimes at odds with Pope Francis' political pronouncements, told a French publication last week it is wrong to use Scripture to justify mass migration.
ICE agents arrested nearly 300 unauthorized workers on at an electronics company in Allen, Texas north of Dallas on Wednesday. This is ICE's largest single worksite enforcement operation in a decade.
A Quinnipiac poll found strong opposition to issuing drivers' licenses to illegal aliens among New York State voters. Voters in the state opposed this policy 57% to 37%.