Associates of former President Donald Trump are gearing up for an aggressive push to limit immigration if he wins a second term, with plans to deport asylum seekers and dismantle existing protections. These efforts include preparing executive orders and policy memos aimed at significantly reducing the number of migrants crossing the US-Mexico border. According to several individuals involved, these preparations are in full swing, as reported by The Wall Street Journal.
Trump has expressed intentions to carry out the largest mass deportation in U.S. history, which would involve expediting asylum hearings to fast-track deportations, removing protections implemented by the Biden administration, and pressuring other countries to accept their citizens back. Drawing inspiration from a UK deal with Rwanda for handling asylum seekers, Trump’s allies are looking to revive a 2020 agreement with Guatemala, which had sent about 1,000 migrants from El Salvador and Honduras to seek asylum there.
However, the UK-Rwanda deal has been stalled due to legal challenges, and a former Trump administration official acknowledged to The Journal the “significant” logistical hurdles they would face. Despite these challenges, immigration remains a central issue for Trump, who has continuously advocated for stricter immigration controls since his 2016 campaign. This year, he urged Republicans to block a bipartisan immigration deal to prevent President Joe Biden from claiming a victory on the issue.
Biden campaign spokesperson Ammar Moussa criticized Trump’s approach, stating, “The American people want solutions on the border, Donald Trump only wants chaos.” Moussa accused Trump of undermining effective bipartisan border solutions and siding with criminals over the American public. He added that Trump’s second-term agenda, including potential family separations and military enforcement of immigration policies, would be rejected by the American people.
In contrast, Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt defended Trump’s immigration policies, blaming Biden for an “unprecedented and illegal immigration, humanitarian and national security crisis” at the southern border. Leavitt promised that Trump would restore his previous policies and introduce new measures to deter illegal immigration, pledging a massive deportation operation.
Leavitt asserted, “As President Trump has said, the millions of illegals Biden has resettled across America should not get comfortable because very soon they will be going home.” She emphasized that a second Trump administration would employ executive actions to bypass legal obstacles and enforce deportations without requiring Congressional approval.
Discussions about Trump’s potential immigration policies are ongoing within his campaign and among conservative groups like the America First Policy Institute and the Heritage Foundation. These groups are involved in Project 2025, a collaborative effort to plan for a right-wing administration’s policies and staffing.
However, Trump advisers Susie Wiles and Chris LaCivita have cautioned against speculative reports and emphasized that only official communications from Trump or authorized campaign members should be considered definitive. They criticized some allies and media outlets for spreading unverified information about potential future policies and staffing.
Reflecting on the disorganized transition after Trump’s 2016 victory, some officials hope to avoid similar chaos by having well-prepared plans in place. This includes avoiding the scenario where Trump fired his transition team head, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, and discarded their plans.
Trump has indicated that he plans to take decisive actions on his first day back in office, mirroring Biden’s use of executive actions on his first day in January 2021. Trump has stated that he intends to deport up to 20 million people, with plans to utilize military bases to expand detention capacity for migrants. Advisers are also considering ordering red state governors to deploy the National Guard as immigration officers, with potential funding sourced from Congress or redirected from the Department of Defense.
As Trump prepares for a possible second term, his allies are focused on removing barriers to implementing severe immigration restrictions and deportations, reflecting his ongoing commitment to stringent immigration policies.