Trump issues executive order for wall along U.S.-Mexican border

Donald Trump has ordered the feds build a wall on the southern U.S. border.

Trump issued an executive order yesterday, citing several laws already on the books, including the Immigration and Nationality Act, the Secure Fence Act of 2006 and the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996.

Here is a brief overview of the key elements to the executive order:

  • Secure the southern border “through the immediate construction of a physical wall on the southern border, monitored and supported by adequate personnel so as to prevent illegal immigration, drug and human trafficking, and acts of terrorism”
  • Detain individuals apprehended on suspicion of violating federal or state law
  • Expedite determinations of apprehended individuals’ claims of eligibility to remain in the country
  • Promptly remove individuals whose legal claims to remain in the United States have been lawfully rejected and after any civil or criminal sanctions have been imposed
  • Work with states and local law enforcement in enacting Federal-State partnerships to enforce Federal immigration priorities

“Transnational criminal organizations operate sophisticated drug- and human-trafficking networks and smuggling operations on both sides of the southern border, contributing to a significant increase in violent crime and United States deaths from dangerous drugs,” Trump said in the executive order. “Among those who illegally enter are those who seek to harm Americans through acts of terror or criminal conduct. Continued illegal immigration presents a clear and present danger to the interests of the United States.”