The speed with which US President Donald Trump is going about fulfilling his promises on the immigration front should come as no surprise. And it goes much beyond humouring his Make America Great Again (MAGA) crowd. He has stuck to his promise of ridding the Birthright Citizenship even if temporarily halted by a federal judge as being “blatantly unconstitutional”. And sooner or later he will set his sights on the H-1B visas under the guise of reforming the high skills programme.
The 47th President does not care what friends, allies and adversaries have to say. And the more one protests on immigration, the tougher the response will be like sending additional troops to the border or speeding up deportation orders of those granted temporary relief by the Biden administration. Various studies have shown that there are about 12 million illegals in America; but Trump puts the figure closer to 25 million.
Mexico may account for about one-third of the illegals in America with about four million and heads the pack. India is not too far behind with about a 6.5 per cent share or in the range of 725,000 to 750,000. It is believed that about 50 per cent of Asian descent illegals in the US are from India.
Indian illegals
In the immediate context it is reported that some 18,000 illegal Indian migrants have been identified and steps are underway to send them back home even as Washington has demurred of India being uncooperative.
New Delhi has maintained that it has always been open to the “legitimate return” of undocumented Indians, a point that was reiterated during the recent visit of the External Affairs Minister to Washington for the Presidential inauguration.
The point that the US would have to understand is that the return of 18,000 may be a first step but India will have to be doubly careful in making sure that the returnees are indeed Indian citizens without any room for undesirables and terrorists getting travel papers waving bogus documents procured in India or elsewhere looking for legitimate entry.
Ending birthright citizenship as Trump has vowed is a far more difficult process than issuing an Executive order as the President has just seen. As many as 22 States have challenged the order, an issue that may well work its way up to the Supreme Court.
Or it remains to be seen if Trump has the legislative wherewithal to change the constitution to undo the 14th amendment. Essentially Trump has been making the point that he wants to end “birth tourism” for an American passport or illegals finding a pathway to permanent residency and citizenship through their children born in America.
The backlog
The impending curbs on birthright citizenship is not just confined to the illegals; also those on temporary visas. The backlog for permanent residency being what it is (at times upwards of 100 years), the categorization as parents of “immediate relatives” which would have accelerated the process will now perhaps not be available if Trump has his way.
Indian American law makers and civil rights activists have been sharply critical of efforts to get rid of birthright citizenship; but the far right within the MAGA and outside are equally determined to see the passage of this measure.
Trump has consistently supported the H-1B high skills visa not because his “best” friend Elon Musk is behind it; but because he understands the value of such visas and the benefits they bring to America.
But one can safely expect reforms to the H-1B with quality of skill flow and on the salaries front as well. And in the overhaul of the immigration system, the L 1 (Intra-Company transfer) and the B 1 (for business trips combined with tourism as a B 1/B2) visas will also merit attention.
The writer is a senior journalist who has reported from Washington DC on North America and United Nations