Trump uses a new report — stating that 73% of those convicted of ‘international terrorism-related charges’ in the U.S. were foreign-born — to call for immigration reform
The president argues his case for immigration reform is bolstered by the report
But critics say the findings lack detail and do not provide conclusive evidence
Administration staff insist reform is imperative and the current system is unfair
Immigration reform was a centrepiece of Trump’s presidential campaign
By ALASTAIR TANCRED
DAILYMAIL.COM
17 January 2018
President Donald Trump has said that his case for immigration reform has been strengthened by the publication of a report by the Departments of Justice and Homeland Security which shows that nearly three out of four individuals convicted on international terrorism charges in the U.S. were foreign-born.
Immigration reform was a centrepiece of Mr Trump’s presidential campaign and last week he was forced to deny accusations that he was racist when a row broke out over his alleged use of the word ‘***hole’ to describe African nations during a bipartisan Oval Office meeting on immigration reform.
His administration on Tuesday said the latest analysis shows that 73% of those convicted of ‘international terrorism-related charges’ in US federal courts following the attacks on 11 September 2001 were ‘foreign-born.’
According to the report, at least about 550 people were convicted of international terrorism-related charges in the U.S. between September 11, 2001 and December 31, 2016.
Of those convicted, 254 were not U.S. citizens, 148 were foreign-born and received citizenship and 147 were citizens by birth. It said that the DHS in 2017 denied U.S. entry to 2,554 people on the terror watch list.
Trump reacted to the report by tweeting: ‘We have submitted to Congress a list of resources and reforms we need to keep America safe, including moving away from a random chain migration and lottery system, to one that is merit-based.’
But critics say the 11-page document does not provide conclusive evidence and is made up of snapshot data released to the public in the midst of a protracted immigration fight on Capitol Hill.
They argue that it does not provide a comprehensive breakdown of how many individuals were arrested for terror acts committed on U.S. soil and does not explain how many foreign nationals were radicalized only after entering the U.S.
Furthermore they say that the report itself acknowledges its own shortcomings by conceding that the analysis ‘does not include individuals convicted of offenses relating to domestic terrorism, nor does it include information related to terrorism-related convictions in state courts.’
But the president insists that his objectives in relation to immigration reform are benign – his staff say they have made that abundantly clear in recent meetings on immigration with Democrat and Republican lawmakers.
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