NBC 5’s Maria Guerrero has a look at the concerns and questions surrounding President-elect Trump’s plans for the border.
President-Elect Donald Trump has promised sweeping action in a second administration.
He has vowed to close the Southern Border on Day One, launching the largest domestic deportation operation in American history.
On Wednesday during a visit to Tyler, Gov. Greg Abbott said it would take time for Mr. Trump to fulfill that promise.
“It’s going to take Trump time,” said Abbott. “Time to build up, it’s not going to be overnight, build ICE, build Border Patrol then remove criminals first.”
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The president’s campaign promises will once again face a reality check when it comes to what’s legally and fiscally possible, according to legal experts.
In North Dallas, Bryan Sanguino and his friends walked to the grocery store on Wednesday afternoon.
“I’ve been here almost two years. I’m Colombian,” he said.
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Sanguino says he boarded a flight to Mexico and then to the U.S. where he surrendered to U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agents claiming asylum.
He’s now anxious about his future in the United States.
“I’m contemplative over President Donald Trump winning the election,” he said. “We’re hoping it doesn’t lead to massive deportation like he has said.”
Mass deportation operations and fear-inducing “roundups” of undocumented migrants have been carried out in years past, says Dallas immigration lawyer Fernando Dubove, pointing to operations conducted in 1997 and 2001.
Dubove says the rhetoric surrounding illegal immigration will lead to 'fear, fear, fear' among the migrant community.
His focus now is on ensuring migrants know their rights while urging the administration to set priorities and focus on violent criminals.
“President Trump, I have no doubt is going to over-extend, overreach his hand thinking he can just start rounding people up without arrest warrants, search warrants anything like that,” predicts Dubove. “There’s going to be a lot of litigation and hopefully that litigation will provide the due process protections the community is going to need.”
While Trump has said he would target criminals, it’s not clear how and exactly who would be targeted in deportation operations.
Will it be the newest arrivals on the Southern border from around the world, many claiming asylum and allowed in by the Biden Administration with an immigration court date several years down the road?
Sanguino tells NBC 5 he was granted a five-year work permit and an immigration hearing set for 2028.
Would ‘mixed-status’ families be targeted? What about migrants who have lived and worked in the U.S. for decades?
What about young people known as 'Dreamers,' who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children?
“Let’s say there are 11 million people in the U.S. without legal status. Probably 25% of those, based on my practice, they’re in line waiting for a family member that petitioned them years and years ago, but the line is 18-20 years behind,” said Dubove. “Do you really want to tie up prosecutors and immigration judges going after those folks and then delay those who are really ‘criminal’ aliens? That’s counterproductive. There’s only so many resources.”
Dubove is eager to learn if Mr. Trump seeks to revoke executive orders signed by President Biden, including the ‘parole in place’ policy that allows eligible migrants to remain in the U.S. during immigration proceedings instead of returning to countries of entry like Mexico to await their case.
Not only will this lead to a wave of litigation, he says, but also a wave of ‘fear.’
“They have to report regularly to ICE it’s one of the requirements,” said Dubove. They’re going to be scared to do that every six months, once a year. They’re going to be scared to go do that.”
Dubove also expects legal challenges if the administration seeks to end ‘Temporary Protective Status’ and ‘DACA’ programs.
Previous efforts ended up with the High Court ruling the programs can remain in place for now.
When it comes to Mr. Trump previously floating around ideas of ending birthright citizenship, Dubove says, “That’s a constitutional challenge I think he will lose and there’s so much on his plate. Why go fighting windmills when you’ve got to start with the criminals early on?”
Concentrated efforts targeting ‘criminal aliens’ can easily begin with federal and state prison systems.
“You find the aggravated felons, the drug dealers, the sex offenders, the repeat theft and those are the folks you can go after and that makes sense,” he said.
Targeting migrants who have formed families and communities in the U.S. would not only be unfair but have unintended consequences, he says.
These migrants would likely be afforded years-long deportation proceedings arguing for a ‘cancellation of removal.’
“If Trump tries to start trying to deport all of them, he’s going to back up the courts and it’s going to result in those who do have criminal convictions being able to put off their hearing,” said Dubove.
“He appreciates running government like you run a business so go after this low-lying fruit, these folks who’ve been here 15-20 years in line,” said Dubove. “Give them some kind of temporary status. Let them pay them the fees, thousands in fees while they wait to get their visa.”
Dubove predicts immigration reform will not happen, unless ‘moderate’ Republicans and the business community go to the president and say: “We need these people.”
Sanguino says he is currently working in the construction industry with hopes of one day bringing his family over from Colombia.
He acknowledges the presence of a criminal element within the influx of migrants and says he supports efforts to deport those individuals.
“I know that some of the people who came here had an order for their arrest back in their countries,” he said.
Dubove confirms immigration officials can only verify migrants’ criminal history in the U.S., not their countries of origin.
When asked what message he has for President-Elect Trump, Sanguino says: “Well, the strong workforce here in the United States comes mainly from Latinos, so please consider that and make the best decision for us and this country.”
