Trump’s revised travel ban targets same countries, source says
ASSOCIATED PRESS
People carried posters during a rally in support of Muslim Americans in Times Square today.
WASHINGTON >> A draft of President Donald Trump’s revised immigration ban targets the same seven countries listed in his original executive order and exempts travelers who already have a visa to travel to the U.S., even if they haven’t used it yet.
A senior administration official said the order, which Trump revised after federal courts held up his original immigration and refugee ban, will target only those same seven Muslim-majority countries — Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan and Libya.
The official said that green-card holders and dual citizens of the U.S. and any of those countries are exempt. The new draft also no longer directs authorities to single out — and reject — Syrian refugees when processing new visa applications.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the order before it’s made public. The official noted that the draft is subject to change ahead of its signing, which Trump said could come sometime this week.
Asked about the revised order, White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the document circulating was a draft and that a final version should be released soon. The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Wall Street Journal also reported that the current draft of the revised order focused on the seven countries but excluded those with green cards.
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Trump’s original executive order triggered chaos at airports around the world, as travelers were detained when the order rapidly went into effect, U.S. permanent residents known as green-card holders among them. Attorneys provided legal assistance to those held and protesters descended on the airports as news of the order’s implementation spread. In its original form, the order temporarily suspended all travel to the U.S. for citizens of those seven Muslim-majority countries for 90 days.
The original order also called for Homeland Security and State department officials, along with the director of national intelligence, to review what information the government needs to fully vet would-be visitors and come up with a list of countries that can’t or won’t make the information available. It said the government will give countries 60 days to start providing the information or citizens from those countries will be barred from traveling to the United States.
Even if Syrian refugees are no longer automatically rejected under the new order, the pace of refugees entering the U.S. from all countries is likely to slow significantly. That’s because even when the courts put Trump’s original ban on hold, they left untouched Trump’s 50,000-per-year refugee cap, a cut of more than half from the cap under the Obama administration.
The U.S. has already taken in more than 35,000 refugees this year, leaving less than 15,000 spots before hitting Trump’s cap, according to a U.S. official. That means that for the rest of this fiscal year, the number of refugees being let in per week will likely fall to a fraction of what it had been under the Obama administration’s cap of 110,000.
Earlier this month, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco refused to reinstate Trump’s ban, unanimously rejecting the administration’s claim of presidential authority, questioning its motives and concluding that the order was unlikely to survive legal challenges. The pushback prompted Trump to tweet “SEE YOU IN COURT!” and he has since lashed out at the judicial branch, accusing it of issuing a politically motivated decision.
Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said Saturday that Trump is working on a “streamlined” version of his executive order banning travel from the seven nations to iron out the difficulties that landed his first order in the courts.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference about combating terrorism, Kelly said Trump’s original order was designed as a “temporary pause” to allow him to “see where our immigration and vetting system has gaps — and gaps it has — that could be exploited.”
He said the Trump administration was surprised when U.S. courts blocked the executive order and now “the president is contemplating releasing a tighter, more streamlined version” of the travel ban.
Kelly said this next time he will be able to “make sure that there’s no one caught in the system of moving from overseas to our airports.”
Kelly mentioned “seven nations” again on Saturday, leading to speculation they will all be included in Trump’s next executive order.
Trump’s order sparked an immediate backlash and sowed chaos and outrage, with travelers detained at airports, panicked families searching for relatives and protesters marching against the sweeping measure — parts of which were blocked by several federal courts.
Protests were held across the country, including in sight of the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island in New York City, and at international airports where travelers were temporarily detained.
28 responses to “Trump’s revised travel ban targets same countries, source says”
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Odd that Mr. Trump again seems to be avoiding countries in which he and his sons do business. Very odd! None of these countries have a Trump hotel or office building. What a coincidence!
So he chooses the countries that have not exported terror here, and avoids the countries that DO export terror.
Thanks for this carefully thought out plan, Mr. Trump!
IRT Klastri, mahalo for your closing sentence, “for this carefully thought out plan” which now conforms to the path established by the 9th for President Trump.
This new plan was carefully thought out only to protect his family business.
The plan, of course, makes no sense whatever, if the goal was actually to stop entry by actual terrorists.
This is who we have in the White House – a craven, greedy psychotic. It’s a national disgrace and scandal.
IRT kuroiwaj, 1st version of the EO had a typo, targeting Muslims, which generated all the uproar
apprentice president actually meant to target “Moose-Lambs”; refer to 5:00 in https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWuc18xISwI
also, despite resistance from the news media, along w/ the entire USA, he stated he will not be “deturd”; see 4:51 of video link above
B safe amerrika !
IRT klastri: Agree, keep America safe as long as it doesn’t harm The Brand…#MAGA
Nothing odd about it, klastri. You would have to be a nut job to do business in a country that has no central government and where citizens thereof spend most of their time trying to kill their fellow citizens.
Iran has a robust central government, and the place is well controlled. Trump just chose to not do business there. Hence, they’re on the Muslim ban list. Other countries are as challenged, but he doesn’t do business in them either – yet.
But you should offer that story to Sean Spicer. Maybe he can use it from the podium tomorrow.
Spicer can’t, he will be too busy addressing all those Swedish families that have gone through one of the worst disasters in modern history…we are just getting over the horror of Bowling Green and no Sweden, when will the killings stop…#MAGA
Spicer is the man. Great job snuffing the media for the most part. The real work is getting done and the road show continues.
What a made up conspiracy theory,Klastri. Again, the alt left has nothing to go on but fear mongering. You love the freedom epxress your views, yet seldom if ever use the right to remain silent. A fool is the the most loquacious one in the room, the quite one the wisest. The alt left libtards are clearly the ones that do a lot of talking about fake things a lot.
Oh my…I like your use of alternative facts, Klastri. Great way to prove your point! LOL!!!!
Klastri, you know Trump used the same list Obama put together. Stop with the conspiracy theories.
klastri and juris> I just had to comment. Do you know why the Trumps’ don’t have any dealings in Iran? I’ll give you a hint..in the near future there may be no more Iran. Just a level field of miles and miles of glass. How can you even patronize on how good the Iranians are, shame on you. They hate the Americans as much as they hate the Israelis. I say “Death to those who threaten our way of life.” I would rather kill them first before they kill us. Sometime in this world and life the US has to take the unfavorable action to preserve peace and our way of life. Criticisms will come but who else need we impose our power upon??? Think about it?????? Tired of being used for useless wars and police actions.
… You would have to be a nut job to sell condoms & toilets in a country that has no central government…
http://www.staradvertiser.com/2017/02/14/breaking-news/trump-toilets-condoms-could-be-flushed-after-his-china-win/#comment-297731
There are over 50 Muslim majority countries, only 6 have Trump businesses.
Please tell me why Trump excluded the other 40 some Muslim countries if the real reason is religious discrimination?
Your claim seems baseless and illogical on it’s face. Are you sure you’re an attorney, or do you just tell people that?
Did anyone else see the video of ISIS execute a prisoner by running over him with a tank?
That’s what the left want possible?..that kind of subhumans sneaking into America?
Relax, you’re more likely to be killed by a gun shot by one of your fellow Americans. And you’re more likely to die in a car accident caused by one of your fellow Americans than being shot.
You make no sense whatsoever. You are more likely to be a wimpy liberal afraid of his own shadow. All hat and no cattle.
@ PoiDoggy
Thank heavens you’re in no position of power…phew!
IRT PoiDoggy: Great point…You make perfect sense…Easier for them to be afraid of somebody that doesn’t look like them, than it is to be afraid of someone who does look like them…It’s the laziness of the human mind, it has to make quick decisions on what is safe and not, and it chooses things that look and act like us and labels them safe and if it doesn’t look and act like us then it is dangerous…#MAGA
“afraid of someone who doesn’t look like them”
It’s more than that. I am assuming that you have not read the Koran.
It authorizes conquer then convert or kill.
The Jews and the Christians, as fellow people of the Book, get to remain alive if they do not convert, if they pay a special tax.
The others are in a treacherous situation.
I appreciate that other religions had their moments, like the Inquisition, but that was an aberration that is not written into the religion.
The Koran is also full of good morals and principles for living, much of which seems to be copied from the Bible, especially the OT.
I appreciate that most people just want to live their lives and be peaceful good people.
But there are things in Islam different from the other major religions, and the Islamic extremists (if we can call them that) latch on to this.
The original executive order sought to offer special protection to persecuted religious minorities, such as the Yazidi, Bhai or Christians.
I hope it is still there. I believe they should have priority.
IRT Cricket: “Easier for them to be afraid of somebody that doesn’t look like them, than it is to be afraid of someone who does look like them”
My point is regarding how we are more afraid of something that kills less but looks different THAN we are of something that looks familiar but kills more…I’m not addressing the dangerous but our reaction to these dangers…#MAGA
Did anyone else see the news of the American mothers killing their OWN preteen children by stabbing them multiple times?
That’s what the right is distracting America from…that kind of subhumans born in America?
It’s George Bush’s fault. Get real clueless.
our government needs to vet these would be refugees and visitors coming into this country, and these terrorist countries can’t or won’t make information available because they have no government that has there records of what they did in there country so what’s the best way, don’t let them into our country. so ban them from entering here, sounds logical to me. go POTUS TRUMP. stick to your guns a majority of us American’s are behind you.
also all these American muslims that are protesting when your in your mosque or around other muslims and you hears they want to do harm to this country quit being cowards and go to the law enforcement agencies and squeal on these people you so called American muslims.
It’s ludicrous for anyone to oppose Trump’s desire to temporarily halt immigrants from countries that cannot provide information on the immigrant. I belive Trump’s plan for safe zones in their countries makes total sense. ISIS should not be allowed to simply kick people out of their homes and country. In fct, ISIS should not exist.
Where’s Rudy ?