Trump live updates: President suggests ground strikes on Venezuela could be next

The plans were presented to the White House in April and July by officials from the Homeland Security and State departments after President Trump asked federal agencies to study whether refugee resettlement was in the U.S. interest. Mr. Trump had suspended refugee admissions on his first day in office and sought proposals on how and whether the administration should continue the program.

Trump administration officials have not ruled out any of these ideas, according to people familiar with the matter, although there is no set timetable for approving or rejecting the ideas. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the confidential plans.

The proposed changes would place more emphasis on applicants’ ability to assimilate into the United States, requiring them to take courses on “American history and values” and “respect for cultural norms.”

The proposals also advise Mr Trump to prioritize Europeans who have been “targeted for the peaceful expression of opinions online, such as opposition to mass immigration or support for ‘populist’ political parties”.

This appears to be a reference to the far-right European political party Alternative for Germany, whose leaders have trivialized the Holocaust, revived Nazi slogans and denigrated foreigners. Vice President JD Vance criticized Germany for trying to suppress the views of the group known as the AfD.

A senior official said the Trump administration was monitoring the situation in Europe to determine whether anyone would be eligible for refugee status. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the plan had not been finalized.

Mr. Trump implemented some of the proposals in the documents even before the plans were submitted to him, including drastically reducing refugee admissions and granting priority status to Afrikaners, the white minority who once ruled South Africa’s brutal apartheid system.

Mr. Trump claimed that Afrikaners faced racial persecution in their home country, a claim vigorously disputed by government officials there. Police statistics do not show that white people are more vulnerable to violent crime than other people in South Africa.

Taken together, these proposals provide a window into Mr. Trump’s intentions for a program that has become the symbol of America’s sanctuary role.

Mr Trump and many American voters have rejected that role after years of record illegal crossings at the US-Mexico border. Although the refugee program, with its meticulous screening processes and years of waiting, is considered the “right way” to seek protection in the United States, Mr. Trump has made clear that he wants to crack down on immigration in general – whether legal or illegal.

According to the reasoning laid out in the documents submitted to Mr. Trump, America’s acceptance of refugees has made the country too diverse.

“The sharp increase in diversity has reduced the level of social trust essential for the functioning of a democratic regime,” according to one of the documents. The administration should only welcome “refugees who can be fully and properly assimilated and who are aligned with the president’s goals.”

To that end, the documents say, Mr. Trump should rescind the applications of hundreds of thousands of people who are already poised to come to the United States as refugees, many of whom have undergone extensive security screenings and orientations.

And Mr. Trump’s federal agencies have proposed imposing limits on the number of refugees who can settle in communities that already have high immigrant populations, saying the United States should avoid “concentration of non-native citizens” in order to promote assimilation.

Thomas Pigott, a State Department spokesman, would not comment on the specific details of the documents, but he said, “It should come as no surprise that the State Department implements the priorities of the duly elected President of the United States.” » He added: “This administration unapologetically puts the interests of the American people first. »

The administration has made some exceptions to its ban on welcoming refugees. According to the documents, federal agencies worked to resettle a limited number of Afghans who assisted U.S. soldiers during the war.

Critics say the plans reveal the president’s vision of what America should look like.

“It reflects a pre-existing idea among some in the Trump administration about who the real Americans are,” said Barbara L. Strack, former chief of the refugee affairs division at Citizenship and Immigration Services during the Bush, Obama and Trump administrations. “And they think they’re white and Christian.”

Other changes include more intensive security screening for refugees, including expanded DNA testing for children to ensure they are related to the adults they are traveling with.

Mr. Trump also plans to reduce the number of refugees allowed into the United States to 7,500 in the coming year, a drastic decrease from the limit of 125,000 set by the Biden administration last year.

Mr. Trump is required by law to consult with Congress on imposing a refugee limit, but White House officials say the government shutdown has delayed that decision.

Administration officials have not finished submitting proposals to the White House. According to a draft of a third report, obtained by The New York Times, the latest proposal calls for U.S. embassies to make referrals for who should be considered for refugee status, rather than the United Nations, which is a long-standing practice. This change would allow the Americans to better control those who are funneled into the refugee channel.

At the United Nations General Assembly summit last month, Christopher Landau, deputy secretary of state, defended the Trump administration’s approach during a panel on refugee policy.

“To say the process is susceptible to abuse is not xenophobic, it’s not being a mean or bad person,” Mr Landau said.

The administration has argued that allowing thousands of refugees from around the world to enter the country would overwhelm American communities that have already requested additional resources to help the record number of migrants who have crossed the U.S.-Mexico border under the Biden administration.

Migrants at the border, however, seek protection through a program separate from that of refugees, who often wait years abroad before being allowed to travel to the United States. The refugee program has consistently received bipartisan support from Republicans and Democrats.

Mr. Trump and the architect of his immigration restrictions, Stephen Miller, have sought for years to limit the number of refugees entering the United States, particularly from Africa or predominantly Muslim countries. During his first term, Mr. Trump asked in a White House meeting why he would accept immigrants from Haiti and African countries, which he called “shithole countries,” rather than Europe.

His administration now appears ready to translate those sentiments into policy.

In the report, administration officials also propose barring refugees from settling in U.S. communities that have requested federal aid to help migrants in recent years.

But many local leaders and refugee advocates say that not only can refugees adapt effectively to life in America, but they also benefit local economies.

Marian Abernathy, lay leader of the Judea Reform Congregation synagogue in Durham, North Carolina, has helped refugees who have settled in her community since 2016, including a dozen families in the past four years from Afghanistan, Ukraine, Haiti, Venezuela and Syria.

Refugees have worked as health care aides, engineers, Uber drivers, medical technicians and lunch coordinators at local schools, she said.

“They come to our house for dinner,” she said. “We go to their house for dinner. We go to events together, we go out to the museum. I don’t feel like they’re not integrated.”

“I’ve rarely seen a group of people,” she said, “who work harder and want less help. »