Trump immigration crackdown starts on Day One with 10 executive orders. Here’s a list
President Donald Trump signed an unprecedented number of executive orders on the first day of his new term in office.
Ten of the dozens of executive orders signed on Jan. 20 were immigration-related, according to White House documents, following Trump’s campaign promises to crack down on crossings at the southern border.
Some of the orders targeted asylum seekers crossing the southern border while others repealed birthright citizenship to children born to undocumented immigrants on U.S. soil.
The orders are already facing legal challenges as 18 states file a lawsuit over Trump’s order to end birthright citizenship, which he signed hours just after he was sworn in.
Washington, Arizona, Illinois and Oregon also filed separate federal lawsuits over the order.
“He’s entitled to enact a policy that he sees fit for the country (but) this is an extreme and unprecedented act,” New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said during a Jan. 21 news conference, according to ABC. “This isn’t just an attack on the law. It’s an attack on the very fabric of this nation.”
More lawsuits by Democratic-led states could further challenge the early phases of Trump’s agenda, according to Reuters.
Here’s what Trump’s executive orders on immigration aim to do:
- Declare a national emergency at the U.S.-Mexico border, which will deploy the military to the southern border.
- End birthright citizenship for children born in the United States whose parents are not “lawful permanent resident(s) or citizens.”
- Continue construction on a wall spanning across the southern border.
- Prevent sanctuary city jurisdictions from receiving federal money and potentially take legal action against them.
- Deem some international cartels and gangs such as MS-13 and Tren de Aragua as foreign terrorist organizations.
- Suspend entry of immigrants Trump accuses of an “invasion” and threatening public health and safety at the southern border.
- Call on the Attorney General to pursue the death penalty for undocumented immigrants who commit a capital crime.
- Deny public benefits to undocumented immigrants.
- Halt refugee admissions into the United States.
- Reinstate the “Remain in Mexico” policy, which repealed a program that allowed asylum seekers to remain in the country while their cases were under consideration.
- Require detained undocumented immigrants in the U.S. to register and be fingerprinted.
- End the CBP One app program, which allowed undocumented migrants to submit information and schedule appointments at the southern border.
This story was originally published January 21, 2025 at 12:19 PM with the headline "Trump immigration crackdown starts on Day One with 10 executive orders. Here’s a list."
