Trump Is Fighting to Dramatically Restrict Legal Immigration: New at Reason

From the moment Donald Trump stepped into the Oval Office, he has acted deliberately to restrict the number of immigrants coming to the United States. His administration has not only been cracking down on unauthorized entry to the country but also closing off legal avenues for immigration.

The administration initially curtailed admission from Muslim countries and slashed refugees. And despite Trump’s pledge to help persecuted Christians, America admitted only about three dozen Christian refugees from the Middle East in 2018, a number that could comfortably fit in a school bus. The administration argues that it would rather support refugees overseas. But that’s just spin: The president’s 2020 budget proposes to slash overseas assistance to refugees.

In his most recent State of the Union address, Trump declared that he wanted “people to come into our country in the largest numbers ever.” But his words are constantly overshadowed by his actions, like a recent Homeland Security proposal to cut legal immigration by a roughly 20 percent drop. The lesson is clear: Ignore what Donald Trump says and instead watch what his administration does, writes Stuart Anderson in his latest at Reason.

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