Trump’s Wall Isn’t Up Yet, But Stephen Miller Is Still Shrinking Immigration

By Nathan Guttman November 22, 2017

While attention has been focused on President Donald Trump’s plan to curb illegal immigration to the United States, his administration, led by senior adviser Stephen Miller, is working tirelessly to decrease the number of foreigners entering America legally for work, family reunification, or to seek refuge.

The Washington Post provided a rundown of the variety of measures enacted by Trump’s administration in order to limit immigration. These measures include downsizing the refugee relocation program which is aimed at helping refugees seeking a new home after being forced to leave their homeland; ending a temporary protective status for Haitian nationals; and imposing new regulations on professional workers employed by U.S. companies. The administration has also endorsed legislation that would cut the number of Green Cards provided for legal permanent residency by half.

The article points to Miller’s key role in advancing these policies which he had first adopted with Jeff Sessions when serving as his Senate aide before the elections. “In less than a year, their immigration policy prescriptions have moved from the realm of think-tank wish lists to White House executive orders,” the Post noted.

Pro-immigration groups have decried these measures, which are aimed at lowering the total amount of residents who are not born in America. ““Within the administration there are a number of key players who are just looking for every opportunity, every program . . . every administrative or regulatory leeway they have to restrict entry into the United States,” said Linda Hartke, president and chief executive of the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, an organization that resettles refugees.

Contact Nathan Guttman at [email protected] or on Twitter @nathanguttman

Nathan Guttman, staff writer, was the Forward’s Washington bureau chief. He joined the staff in 2006 after serving for five years as Washington correspondent for the Israeli dailies Haaretz and The Jerusalem Post. In Israel, he was the features editor for Ha’aretz and chief editor of Channel 1 TV evening news. He was born in Canada and grew up in Israel. He is a graduate of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

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