- The elevation of Donald Trump to the most powerful office in the world as the President of the United States of America has seen not a day of disturbing occurrences, keeping the global community intrigued and worried. Of course, we are aware of how the extremely unpredictable and maverick Trump went about imposing the reciprocal tariffs on imported products into the country. The tariff war continues to grab international attention in one form or the other form is stating the obvious. None of the countries can lay claim to the fact that they are not affected by the move. Alongside tariffs, the other matter of great importance to Trump is the deportation of illegal immigrants from America.
PC: UC Davis Office of Research
- As we know, millions of illegal immigrants have made America their home over the last several years. True to his words, Trump did issue executive orders to evacuate and deport illegal immigrants. Thankfully, new polls show the majority of Americans are now against harsh action on immigration. This bit of news will be welcomed by scores of worried people. Recollect how Trump had promised the voters during the campaign to undertake the largest deportation programme in American history. He started his presidency by signing an executive order titled ‘Protecting the American People Against Invasion’. Understandably, Trump struck a chord because the US does have a major illegal immigration problem.
PC: The Economist
- For reference, there were over 11mn unauthorized residents by 2022, and roughly 1 in every 15 was Indian. India got a taste of his crackdown in February when the first Globemaster with 104 deportees touched down in Amritsar. And such flights have continued, with an average of 14,700 deportations worldwide every month. The number sounds big, but note that Obama was deporting 36,000 a month in 2013. What’s different about Trump, though, is the cacophony surrounding the move. People were shamed and transported in cuffs. Gruesome optics. And thankfully, America is sick of it, new polls this month show, as reported. A Gallup survey found that only 38% of Americans now support deporting all illegal immigrants, down from 47% last year.
PC: The Hindu
- Hearteningly, 78% are all for letting them become citizens. Why? Because the ordinary American recognizes that the vast majority of illegal immigrants, who have lived for years in America without causing trouble, are useful. A CNN poll also shows 55% Americans think Trump has gone too far on deportations. They don’t want any more detention centres, and 59% are against detaining illegal immigrants who have lived in America for years. Prudence demands that Trump pay heed to these voices, especially when the mood against immigration in his Republican camp is changing fast. Only 48% now want less immigration, as against 88% last year. Throwing out millions of settled workers would be disruptive for the US economy. Time for Trump to relent now.
