Trump: Staying in Mexico will start ‘day one’

Newsweek has been informed that Donald Trump’s “Remain in Mexico” policy would not be reintroduced for months, which seems to contradict the president-elect’s promise to “seal the border” on “Day 1”.

Negotiations are expected to stall the measure, which mandates that asylum applicants remain in Mexico while their applications are being reviewed.

It has been claimed again and again by Trump and his Republican colleagues that Remain in Mexico may be reinstated as soon as he becomes power again.

“All migrant planes will be halted on the first day of my new government. All submissions will be closed via the Migrating Phone App. Catch-and-release is about to cease. At a September campaign event in Wisconsin, he said, “I will restore Remain in Mexico… we will seal the border.”

However, Texas Senator Ted Cruz, who has been in discussions with Trump over the southern border problem, has indicated to Newsweek that this is not feasible.

“We’ll probably take a little bit of time to reinstate because you have to negotiate that with the government of Mexico, but I believe they will do that as well, and we will see the numbers plummet,” Cruz said in a Newsweek interview.

Cruz prioritized border security throughout his own successful campaign, and pre-election surveys showed that both parties supported more immigration restrictions. Republicans and Democrats supported former President Donald Trump’s proposals for stricter immigration restrictions, according to a Gallup poll conducted before the election. Of those surveyed, 55% wanted immigration levels to drop, while 25% wanted them to stay the same.

Cruz continues to be optimistic about Trump’s primary immigration ideas, and Republicans have unified behind the president-elect’s vow to protect the border.

“Trump and his staff will be able to get started right away on January 20. I have no doubt that a number of orders stating that “catch and release is over” will be issued. “We’re constructing the wall,” he said.

Additionally, officials at Customs and Border Protection told Newsweek that they anticipate Trump is going to issue a number of executive measures pertaining to immigration within 24 hours of taking office.

Mexico’s cooperation would be necessary to reinstate the program; if authorities reject it or place restrictions on it, its quick implementation would be hindered.
Remain In Mexico, however, may “certainly” be restored on Day 1 under Trump, according to Ronald Vitiello, who was ICE’s interim director from June 2018 to April 2019.

During Trump’s first administration, Mexico played a key role in maintaining control over their own southern border and helping to put the Margret protection measures into place.

“He has also indicated that he is willing to use the threat of tariffs and a change in the trade relationship with Mexico and others to better secure and sustain a secure border as well as other shared responsibilities between the two countries,” according to Newsweek.

Stay in Mexico.
Formally known as the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), the “Remain in Mexico” policy was implemented in 2019 under the Trump administration and mandated that asylum applicants remain in Mexico while their cases were being handled.

Compared to previous policies that let migrants to stay in the United States throughout this period, Trump’s proposal represented a substantial change.

President Biden formally ended the initiative in June 2021 after pausing it in early 2021 after taking office.

Nevertheless, legal disputes ensued, and later that year, federal courts ordered the Biden administration to restore MPP.

The Biden administration ultimately succeeded in ending the strategy in December 2022, although other immigration enforcement actions still cause some travelers to encounter barriers at the border.

Before being discontinued by the Biden administration, the Remain in Mexico program was criticized for reportedly subjecting migrants—many of whom are susceptible to abuse and exploitation by cartels—to dangerous circumstances.

“We will also see just how the administration behaves fundamentally changing because we will start sending illegal immigrants when they’re apprehended back to their country of origin,” Cruz said.

President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico has cautioned that her nation “must be respected, especially by its trading partners” in response to Trump’s threat of imposing tariffs on Mexican products unless the migrant influx is stopped.

Large-scale deportations
Cruz said that Trump’s program of mass deportations is necessary to prevent human trafficking and fight crimes committed by cartels.

“I promise that it will drastically lower it. There will always be criminals in the world.

“We will also see the revenue that the cartels are earning go down significantly.”

Cruz harshly criticized the Biden-Harris administration’s actions, saying they had directly benefited the cartels.

“They have turned these ruthless killers, known as cartels, into enormous, multibillion-dollar international enterprises. “That must change,” he said.

Additionally, Vitiello has attacked Democrats, especially those in blue states who have vowed to fight Trump’s strategy of mass deportations.

“It is risky and destructive for jurisdictions to pretend to protect the public by allowing illegal aliens who have other laws inside of the United States in those jurisdictions to sanctuary,” said Vitiello.

Video of armed gang members breaking into an Aurora, Colorado apartment complex has brought the notorious Venezuelan criminal organization Tren De Aragua (TdA) into the national limelight.

Jocelyn Nungaray, 12, was murdered in Houston last summer, and two individuals suspected of having links to TdA were taken into custody.

“When illegal aliens are arrested, they must be captured and held in jail rather than being released, according to my legislation, Justice for Jocelyn. Cruz said, “Jocelyn would still be alive if that had been the law.”

According to Cruz, Jocelyn’s death would have been avoided if his proposed law, “Justice for Jocelyn,” which requires that illegal immigrants be held in custody and not released, had been in effect.

“People will continue to be forced to make impossible choices and dangerous routes in their quest for safety,” Amy Fisher, Director of Refugee and Migrant Rights at Amnesty International USA, told Newsweek. The United States has to take a different approach and fund initiatives that aim to reduce the turmoil and improve communities rather than condemning those who are attempting to save their lives.

Due process is one of the constitutional safeguards afforded to immigrants in the United States, irrespective of their immigration status. Legal issues would probably arise if millions of people were deported without adequate hearings.

With almost 3.7 million persons awaiting hearings, the U.S. immigration court system is now experiencing a severe backlog. Since people are often placed in legal limbo for years before their cases are decided, this backlog adds to the delays in deportation procedures.​

It is unclear whether the United States has enough holding cells to house everyone who would be held during deportation procedures, and adding millions more risks would overload the system. Approximately 38,000 to 40,000 inmates may be housed at a time in ICE detention facilities.

Since Biden entered office in 2021, the number of border crossings has increased significantly, especially on the southern border.

In 2023, when the pandemic-era Title 42 regulation was lifted and before President Biden imposed more stringent border restrictions in the spring of 2024, the number reached its greatest level in recent memory.

3.2 million interactions were recorded by U.S. Customs and Border Protection that year, a substantial increase above the previous high of 1.4 million in 2019 during the Trump administration. CBP statistics shows that 143,050 crossings have occurred thus far in October 2024.

“At most, they might be able to set things in motion, or like January 2017, use Executive Order to change immediately the rules for people flying back into the country,” admitted Audie Klotz, a political science professor at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, in an interview with Newsweek. Deportation and detention are long-term solutions that would cost a lot of money. According to a recent estimate, it might be about one trillion dollars over a ten-year period.

Security of the Nation
Cruz delivered a sobering warning on the growing potential of terrorism in the US as a result of border security issues.

“America is at the greatest risk of a terrorist attack than we’ve been at any time since 911,” Cruz said.

“If you want to commit a terrorist act, the natural way to do so, if you’re a terrorist abroad, is to come across our southern border, because it’s essentially a red carpet to anyone looking to commit that kind of crime,” he said.

“Crime and gang violence provide a danger to public safety, while terrorists crossing the southern border pose a threat to national security. I anticipate that the Trump administration will take swift action to address both of those.