Topic of the week for discussion: 2nd to 8th Feb.

2017

Topic: America into a cesspool

President Trump signed on 27th January 2017, an executive order that severely
restricts immigration from seven Muslim countries, suspends all refugee
admission for 120 days, and bars all Syrian refugees indefinitely. The order has
been widely criticized and praisedbut it led to massive protests at several
airports across the country where people with valid documentation were detained.
Legal challenges against those detentions were successful. The administrations
response Sunday only made the situation more unclear.
Affected and Non-affected People:
The executive order applies only to non-U.S. citizens, so anyone with U.S.
citizenshipwhether that person in natural-born or naturalizedis not
affected.
For 120 days, the order bars the entry of any refugee who is awaiting resettlement
in the U.S. It also prohibits all Syrian refugees from entering the U.S. until further
notice. Additionally, it bans the citizens of seven majority-Muslim countries
Iraq, Iran, Syria, Somalia, Sudan, Libya, and Yemenfrom entering the U.S.
on any visa category. This included individuals who are permanent residents of
the U.S. (green-card holders) who were traveling overseas to visit family or for
Topic workthough a senior administration official said their applications would be
considered on a case-by-case basis. The official also said green-card holders from
Introduction those countries who are in the U.S. will have to meet with a consular officer
before leaving the U.S. The order also targets individuals of those countries who
hold dual citizenship with another country. For instance, an individual who
holds both Iraqi and Canadian citizenshipsthough the U.K. foreign secretary
said the U.S. had assured him it didnt apply to U.K. nationals. It does not apply
to individuals who hold U.S. citizenship along with citizenship of another
countrythough a CBP (custom and border protection) agent can presumably
question such a person based on his or her discretion.
Reason for choosing those seven countries:
Trump had made national security a centerpiece of his election campaignat
one point calling for a total and complete ban on all Muslims coming to the
U.S. Spicer noted that the seven countries put on the list were chosen by the
Obama administration. Indeed, it has its roots in the visa-waiver program. The
U.S. allows the citizens of more than 30 countries to visit for short stays without a
visa under this program. But that visa waiver does not apply if a citizen of an
eligible country has visitedwith some exceptionsIran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia,
Sudan, Syria, or Yemen on or after March 1, 2011under measures put in place
by the Obama administration. Those individuals must apply for a visa at a U.S.
consulate. These seven countries are listed under section 217(a)(12) of the INA, 8
U.S.C. 1187(a)(12) of the U.S. code, and it is this code that Trumps executive
order cited while banning citizens of those nations.
 Impact of immigration ban:
The number of permanent residents from these countries is relatively small. For
instance, 1,016,518 green cards were issued in 2014. Of these, 19,153 went to
Iraqis and 11,615 to Iranians, according to the Department of Homeland
Securitys data. These two countries make up the overwhelming majority of
U.S. permanent residents from among the seven nations, which together have
500,000 permanent residents in the U.S. But these seven nations, also account
for 40 percent of U.S. refugee intake.
Numbers, however, seldom tell the whole story. There have been multiple
reports since the executive order was signed of people being prevented from
boarding flights; refugees, who had gone through the years-long process before
being approved to come to the U.S., stranded in third countries; of Iraqis who
had worked for years with the U.S. military being denied entry; of Iranian
students stuck overseas; of U.S. tech companies recalling its foreign workers
because of the possible impact. And there have been protests against the order at
airports across the country, including at New Yorks JFK International
Airport and Dulles Airport outside Washington, D.C., and the Los Angeles
International Airport where lawyers, demonstrators, and the media descended
to witness the orders impact.
Reaction from the world-Is it a Muslim Ban:
The ban includes seven majority Muslim countries, but by no means are these
states the most populous Muslim countries, nor are they among the top
sources of Muslim immigration to the U.S., nor have they produced terrorists in
the same numbers as other Muslim countries not on the list. Indeed, Muslims
from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Pakistan, and other countries can still visit the U.S.

Read further:
https://www.theatlantic.com/news/archive/2017/01/trump-immigration-order-muslims/514844/
http://www.npr.org/2017/01/29/512311973/5-questions-about-the-law-and-trumps-immigration-
order
http://www.cnbc.com/2017/01/29/trumps-immigration-order-reverberates-to-indonesia-
malaysia.html
http://edition.cnn.com/2017/01/28/politics/donald-trump-executive-order-immigration-reaction/