Trump Executive Orders Target Illegal Immigration, Troops Sent to Border

In President Donald Trump’s inaugural address, he announced he would “sign a series of historic executive orders,” adding, “With these actions, we will begin the complete restoration of America and the revolution of common sense. It’s all about common sense.”

The newly inaugurated president listed the Southern Border as his top priority, saying, “First, I will declare a national emergency at our Southern Border.” Then he listed some actions he would take, including halting all illegal entry into the country, ending “the practice of catch and release,” and sending “troops to the southern border to repel the disastrous invasion of our country.”

The president made good on this promise, signing a flurry of executive orders related to illegal immigration and sending more troops to the border.

It’s difficult to get a solid count on how many people have entered the country illegally, but the House Committee on Homeland Security released a factsheet, “Startling Stats,” that details U.S. Customs and Border Protection border encounters with undocumented immigrants. The agency reported 3 million encounters from 2017-2020 and 10.8 million from 2021-2024.

Those numbers don’t include those who may cross the border without encountering an agent. The factsheet adds:

Roughly 2 million known gotaways have evaded Border Patrol agents since FY 2021.

Data from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) shows that, as of July 21, 2024, nearly 650,000 criminal illegal aliens were currently on ICE’s Non-Detained Docket (NDD) and roaming free in the interior.

Since FY2021, 9,055 pounds of fentanyl were seized between ports of entry by Border Patrol, compared to just 1,604 pounds from FY2017-FY2020.

As far as how many illegal aliens actually live in the U.S., the Center for Migration Studies recently stated, “The total undocumented population increased to about 11.7 million in July 2023, an increase of about 800,000 compared to the previous July.”

But the actual number may be much larger.

A study from three Yale-affiliated researchers, using a different data set, estimated “there are 22.1 million undocumented immigrants in the United States.”

And that was back in 2018. Undoubtedly, given the influx of undocumented aliens over the last six years, the number is higher today.

So President Trump is acting to deal with this issue. First, he signed an executive order rescinding orders and actions from the Biden administration that opened our borders to illegal immigration, such as an order “to address the causes of immigration” and “manage migration throughout North and Central America.”

Then, he issued a slew of executive orders and actions, including:

Declaring A National Emergency At The Southern Border Of The United States. As justification, the order cites the influx of “foreign criminal gangs and cartels” and deaths “from drug overdoses because of the illicit narcotics that have flowed across the southern border.” It directs the “Secretaries of Defense and Homeland Security … to construct additional physical barriers along the southern border” and the Secretary of Defense to order armed units to the border.

Clarifying The Military’s Role In Protecting The Territorial Integrity Of The United States. The order gives the U.S. Northern Command “the mission to seal the borders and maintain the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and security of the United States.” At least 1,500 troops are already being sent to safeguard the border.

Realigning The United States Refugee Admissions Program. The order details the harms from “record levels of migration” to cities and towns and suspends the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program until it can be determined that resuming the entry of refugees is in the interests of the United States.

Securing Our Borders. The presidential action states, “A nation without borders is not a nation, and the Federal Government must act with urgency and strength to end the threats posed by an unsecured border.” It makes it the official policy of the U.S. to secure the borders by building a wall, deterring entry of illegal aliens, and removing those have already entered illegally.

Protecting The Meaning And Value Of American Citizenship. The order explains that those born in the U.S. are not automatically citizens if their parents are not lawful residents or citizens. This order is already being challenged by lawsuits from attorneys general in 22 states and the American Civil Liberties Union.

Protecting The American People Against Invasion. The edict declares, “It is the policy of the United States to faithfully execute the immigration laws against all inadmissible and removable aliens, particularly those aliens who threaten the safety or security of the American people,” and it directs agencies to take action accordingly.

Protecting The United States From Foreign Terrorists And Other National Security And Public Safety Threats. The directive tells agencies to enhance vetting and screening processes to eliminate threats from “aliens who intend to commit terrorist attacks, threaten our national security, espouse hateful ideology, or otherwise exploit the immigration laws for malevolent purposes.”

Guaranteeing The States Protection Against Invasion. The presidential order says the influx of illegal aliens threatens public health, safety and national security, declares it is the role of the federal government “to protect each of [the States] against Invasion” and takes action to protect the states.

Designating Cartels And Other Organizations As Foreign Terrorist Organizations And Specially Designated Global Terrorists. Declares organizations “such as Tren de Aragua (TdA) and La Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13)” to be foreign terrorist organizations and a threat to safety and national security and says it is official policy “to ensure the total elimination of these organizations’ presence in the United States.”

Of course all illegal aliens aren’t violent, but some are, and safeguarding the border and following immigration laws already in place is a way to protect citizens and reduce harms.

Related articles and resources:

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Familial DNA Testing on the Southern Border Shouldn’t Have Ended

Fentanyl Overdoses Rise, Connection to Illegal Immigration

Illegal Immigrant Arrested in Murder of Maryland Mom

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It’s Compassionate to Oppose Illegal Immigration. Here’s Why.

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