President Donald Trump is weighing the possibility of confronting the migrant caravan in Mexico by issuing an executive order modeled on his controversial travel ban on individuals entering the U.S. from six Middle Eastern countries afflicted by radical Islamic terrorists.
Trump issued the travel ban in 2017. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Muslim advocacy groups fought it all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court. But in a June 26, 2018, decision decided on a 5-4 vote, the high court upheld the president’s constitutional authority to bar any individual from entering the country for any reason or no reason.
The executive order that’s being assessed now by the president and key aides at the departments of Justice and Homeland Security would still face legal challenges based on international agreements the U.S. has signed, which compel consideration of an individual’s claim to asylum.
An unnamed administration official told Politico the draft executive order is among multiple options under consideration.
Related: Homeland Security Secretary to Caravan: ‘You Cannot Stay’
“The administration is considering a wide range of administrative, legal and legislative options to address the Democrat-created crisis of mass illegal immigration. No decisions have been made at this time. Nor will we forecast to smugglers or caravans what precise strategies will or will not be deployed,” the unnamed official said.
Former federal prosecutor Sidney Powell believes Trump should immediately issue an executive order that stops all immigration until the present system can be fixed.
“I think the president needs to issue an executive order within the next couple of days that makes it clear that we’re not accepting any more immigrants, period,” Powell told LifeZette Wednesday. “He doesn’t even need to specify a time. He can just say, ‘We’re closed, the door is closed, we’re not taking any more applications of any kind, asylum, refugee or otherwise.'”
Critics told Politico they believe the president views such an executive order as a political move intended to motivate Republican base voters in the November 6 midterm elections. Democrats have been favored throughout the campaign to retake control of the House of Representatives and possibly the Senate as well.
But the bitter hostility directed by Democrats and their allies in the mainstream media at Justice Brett Kavanaugh during his September confirmation hearings prompted a surge in interest and involvement among Republicans.
The public response to the formation of the caravan two weeks ago appears also to have contributed to the GOP surge. Republican prospects of maintaining or expanding their Senate majority improved so significantly that some campaign observers also believe the party could stay in control of the House.
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