Our live coverage has ended. Scroll through the posts below to read more or follow CNN Politics.
Advocates for immigrant rights are criticizing President Trump’s immigration proposal, condemning his administration for waging a “war on immigrants.”
Here’s what they’re saying:
President Donald Trump repeatedly referenced other countries’ immigration systems as models for the US to emulate during a White House announcement on an immigration proposal, including Canada’s merit-based admissions systems several times.?
However, in contrast to Trump’s call to reduce the number of asylum claims the administration deems are fraudulent as part of the plan, Canada and Australia, another country whose immigration system he cited, led the world with the number of refugees resettled per capita in 2017, a Pew?report?on UN data notes.
And?by January?of this year, Maclean’s reported that the UN data show Canada and European Union surpassed?the US in the total number resettled refugees.??
The US has historically led the world in the total number of refugee resettlements, but has been on a steep, consistent decline in admissions since the start of the Trump administration. There is?a 30,000 refugee resettlement cap for FY 2019.?
President Trump called for a “major update” to the US immigration system on Thursday, announcing a plan to boost “merit-based” immigration.
Here’s a look at what that means, and why it keeps coming up.
Just before the White?House unveiled its immigration proposal, the mood on Capitol Hill was largely one of shrugs.
The proposal — while many say is well-intentioned — isn’t expected to be the breakthrough that has eluded lawmakers for the entirety of Trump’s presidency (and Obama’s, for that matter).
Here’s how some Republican senators are reacting:
The bottom line is the positions have been litigated. It’s not that lawmakers don’t know what needs fixing. They know that the middle ground is pretty narrow and hasn’t been found before especially in a White House where support can shift quickly and the President can be swayed by one TV segment name checking his proposals as amnesty.??
The reality is that if Republicans or Democrats were going to work together to get something done on immigration, it would have happened last year when members worked for weeks to craft a bipartisan solution that dealt with DACA, border security and the visa program. That plan was torpedoed by the administration just days before the vote after many Republicans had believed Trump was supportive of their effort.
President Trump just announced plans to replace existing green cards with a new “Build America Visa.”
Trump went on to describe the new immigration selection system he hopes to see implemented, which would include a new points-based system. He said migrants will be required to learn English and pass a civics exam.
“You will get more points for?being a younger worker, meaning?you will contribute more to our?social safety net.?You will get more points for?having a valuable skill and?offer of employment and advanced?education or a plan to create?jobs,” Trump said.
He added: “Priority will also be given?to higher wage workers, ensuring?we never undercut?American?labor.?To protect benefits from?American?citizens, immigrants?must be financially?self-sufficient.?Finally, to promote integration,?assimilation and national unity,?future immigrants will be?required to learn English and to?pass a civics exam prior to?admission.”
President Trump says his bill will “humanely reunite unaccompanied children with their families back home” while filtering out what he called “frivolous” claims of asylum in the US.
“Legitimate asylum-seekers are being replaced by those lodging frivolous claims – these are frivolous claims to gain admission into our country,” he said in the Rose Garden.
In his remarks, Trump?praised a separate measure being proposed by Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham that would, in part, change the current asylum process in an attempt to stem the flow of migrants arriving at the southern border.
President Trump says a newly unveiled immigration plan would “transform America’s immigration system into the pride of our nation and the envy of the modern world.”
Trump boasted his measure was not drafted by politicians, but instead utilized input from law enforcement?professionals to make the US southern border “100% operationally secure.”
President Trump says an immigration plan he is unveiling Thursday provides a “clear contrast” with other proposals he’s deemed unsatisfactory.
“Democrats are proposing open borders, lower wages, and frankly lawless chaos,” he said in the Rose Garden. “We are proposing an immigration plan that puts the jobs, wages and safety of American workers first.”
President Trump, speaking from the Rose Garden today, laid out his new immigration plan, which he said includes two goals: securing the border and establishing a new legal immigration system.
Here’s how Trump explained his plan:
President Trump just began his remarks in the White House Rose Garden.
“We’re here on this very?beautiful spring day in the Rose?Garden to unveil our plan to?create a fair, modern and lawful?system of immigration for the?United States,” the President said.?“And it is about time.”
Watch it live in the video player above.
Even within the GOP, immigration is a divisive issue. And if Republicans were to reach a consensus, they’d still have to earn support among Democrats, who control the House of Representatives.
White House senior adviser?Jared Kushner briefed Senate Republicans on the plan Tuesday.?After the meeting, some participants said they were “underwhelmed” by his proposal.
One of the officials acknowledged that the White House proposal would be a “much heavier lift” than Sen. Lindsey Graham’s proposal to change the asylum process — and not all Republicans have bought into the plan.
“Right now, we’re working with Sen. Graham and I know he’s been working with Customs and Border (Protection) on how to deal with the immediate crisis,” a senior administration official said. “This would solve the immediate crisis. But this is obviously a much heavier lift.”
Ahead of today’s immigration announcement, there are divisions inside President Trump’s team about how big to go on?the issue, according to a senior GOP source familiar with internal and external White House discussions.
Though influential players like Stephen Miller want to focus mostly on border issues, some, such as Jared Kushner, say they are willing to go bigger than what will be proposed today — such as including DACA — in order to get a deal.
Remember: The plan currently makes no mention about?Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, also called?DACA.
They are being reminded by GOP allies that they will be run into familiar issues, such as:
White House press secretary Sarah Sanders this morning answered questions about why the Trump administration isn’t touching Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, also called?DACA, in the?immigration?plan it will roll out today.
She said the issue creates division and it was purposely left out.
?Here’s how she put it:
President Trump is set to release a broad outline of proposed?immigration?reforms today.
The White House is selling the plan as addressing border security and moving toward a merit-based immigration system, which gives preference to highly skilled and educated individuals.
But the proposal is short of concrete details and omits discussion of the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program that Democrats have repeatedly said they want resolved.
President Trump will give his remarks live from the White House Rose Garden at 2:30 p.m. ET.
