The Trump administration plans to direct immigration agents to greatly expand the categories of immigrants they target for deportation, according to drafts of two memos seen by Reuters and first reported by McClatchy news organisation on Saturday.
Two sources familiar with the plans told Reuters the documents have been approved by Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly, but are under final review by the White House. They are expected to be released to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) early next week.
Under the orders, hundreds of thousands of people would face expedited removal proceedings, including those that had not been prioritised for deportation under former President Barack Obama.
The memos are guidance to instruct agents in the field to implement two executive orders signed by Mr. Trump on Jan. 25 intended to deter future migration and drive out more illegal migrants from the United States.
Expansion in categories
One memo instructs ICE agents to ignore Mr. Obama’s memos on immigration priorities that targeted only recent arrivals and convicted criminal migrants for deportation. Instead, migrants who have been charged with crimes but not convicted would be prioritised for deportation. The guidance also allows ICE agents wide discretion in deciding who to deport and considers anyone in the United States illegally to be subject to deportation.
The second memo instructs CBP officers to crack down on illegal migration at the border by holding migrants in detention until a determination in their case is made.
