The Trump administration wants to reduce the US refugee cap to the lowest level in decades - and it might go even lower
Associated Press/Alex Brandon
Administration officials said no final decision has been made, but if Trump does drop the cap below 50,000, it would be the lowest amount of refugees admitted to the country since the 1980 creation of the Refugee Act, which gave the president the power to determine refugee admission levels.
Trump, within his first days in office, has already dramatically reduced the refugee cap to 50,000 from the 110,000 President Barack Obama sought to admit for fiscal year 2017.
Senior policy adviser Stephen Miller, one of the staunchest immigration hardliners remaining in the White House, pushed for a cap as low as 15,000, according to the Times. Homeland Security officials, meanwhile, recommended at a Tuesday meeting that the limit be lowered to 40,000.
The news comes amid ongoing litigation over Trump's travel ban, which in part targeted refugees by attempting to halt all refugee resettlement for 120 days, purportedly to allow the administration time to review its vetting and admissions procedures.
The ban has undergone back-and-forth court rulings in recent months, as the Supreme Court prepares to hear arguments on the ban's constitutionality in October. On Tuesday afternoon, the Supreme Court gave the Trump administration a partial victory when it lifted a lower court's injunction that blocked the travel ban from being enforced on refugees with ties to US resettlement agencies.
The lower court ruling would have allowed the admission of up to 24,000 additional refugees.
In the meantime, refugee resettlement organizations in the US have been pushing the Trump administration to set next year's refugee cap at at least 75,000, and have said that a further reduction in admission levels would drain their resources and force the shuttering of many resettlement programs.
"It's not an exaggeration to say the very existence of refugee resettlement as a core aspect of the American story, and America's role as a global leader in this area, is at stake," David Miliband, president of the International Rescue Committee, told the Times.
- I spent $2,000 for 7 nights in a 179-square-foot room on one of the world's largest cruise ships. Take a look inside my cabin.
- Colon cancer rates are rising in young people. If you have two symptoms you should get a colonoscopy, a GI oncologist says.
- Saudi Arabia wants China to help fund its struggling $500 billion Neom megaproject. Investors may not be too excited.
- Catan adds climate change to the latest edition of the world-famous board game
- Tired of blatant misinformation in the media? This video game can help you and your family fight fake news!
- Tired of blatant misinformation in the media? This video game can help you and your family fight fake news!
- JNK India IPO allotment – How to check allotment, GMP, listing date and more
- Indian Army unveils selfie point at Hombotingla Pass ahead of 25th anniversary of Kargil Vijay Diwas
- JNK India IPO allotment date
- JioCinema New Plans
- Realme Narzo 70 Launched
- Apple Let Loose event
- Elon Musk Apology
- RIL cash flows
- Charlie Munger
- Feedbank IPO allotment
- Tata IPO allotment
- Most generous retirement plans
- Broadcom lays off
- Cibil Score vs Cibil Report
- Birla and Bajaj in top Richest
- Nestle Sept 2023 report
- India Equity Market