'Trump’s latest plan to deny asylum seekers protection is illegal'
Not that breaking international treaties to which it is party is anything new to the US, nor that issuing executive orders that are contrary to US law is anything new to Trump.The Trump administration introduced a new rule that would essentially ban Central American immigrants from seeking asylum in the US today, the latest attempt to radically rewrite US immigration policy outside of Congress.
The new rule, issued jointly by the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security, bars anyone who travels through what is called a “safe third country” from applying for asylum in the US. The rule, which isn’t open to public comment and goes into effect July 16, will “enhance the integrity of the asylum process by placing further restrictions or limitations on eligibility,” it states. ...
“The Trump administration is trying to unilaterally reverse our country’s legal and moral commitment to protect those fleeing danger,” said Lee Gelernt, deputy director of the Immigrants’ Rights Project of the American Civil Liberties Union. “This new rule is patently unlawful and we will sue swiftly.”
The Trump administration’s termination of DACA—the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals—program, its attempt to expel hundreds of thousands of Temporary Protected Status residents in the US, and a plan to stop providing migrant children access to education and lawyers, are all being challenged in courts right now. In December, the Supreme Court denied the administration’s request to stay an injunction on a rule barring asylum seekers who don’t cross at legal ports of entry.
Immigration experts say the new rule breaks laws written by Congress and signed by previous presidents. It also contravenes international treaties the US adopted decades ago.