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Podcasts Take Two
Can Trump's 'Invisible Wall' Of Immigration Policies Be Dismantled?
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Nov 19, 2020
Listen • 49:45
Can Trump's 'Invisible Wall' Of Immigration Policies Be Dismantled?

How President Trump has tried to dismantle all of the legal ways to immigrate to the U.S. and what President-elect Biden will do for immigration once in office.

LOS ANGELES - MARCH 28: Students march in streets carrying latin american flags to protest against a proposed immigration policy March 28, 2006 in Los Angeles, California. Reports estimated that the number of students who have walked out of classes to be around 4000. (Photo by J. Emilio Flores/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES - MARCH 28: Students march in streets carrying latin american flags to protest against a proposed immigration policy March 28, 2006 in Los Angeles, California. Reports estimated that the number of students who have walked out of classes to be around 4000. (Photo by J. Emilio Flores/Getty Images)
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J. Emilio Flores/Getty Images
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How The Trump Administration Sought To Transform The U.S. Immigration System

In this opening essay we hear from experts on how the Trump administration sought to transform the US immigration system. A Martinez also shares some of his own family members' experiences as immigrants. 

Guests:

  • Sarah Pierce, policy analyst at the Migration Policy Institute
  • Ali Noorani, author of There Goes the Neighborhood: How Communities Overcome Prejudice and Meet the Challenge of American Immigration and President of the non-partisan advocacy group National Immigration Forum
  • Alex Nowrasteh, Director of Immigration studies at the Cato Institute

Understanding The Muslim Ban

The Trump administration made cracking down on immigration a priority from the start. After taking office in January 2017, President Trump issued an executive order that banned foreign nationals from seven predominantly Muslim countries from entering the United States for 90 days . It was an issue he’d campaigned on and had made promises on at a rally in South Carolina back in 2015. The so-called Muslim ban quickly spurred demonstrations across the country-- including at LAX. Immigration lawyers rushed to challenge its legality. But ultimately in June 2018, the Supreme Court upheld the travel ban in a 5 to 4 decision.

Guest:

  • Farida Chehata, immigration attorney formerly with the Council on American-Islamic Relations in Los Angeles

US Muslim Ban: Mina Mahdayi's Story

Mina Mahdavi is a cyber security engineer in California. She has not been able to bring her mother from Iran to the U.S. because of the Muslim ban. We listen to her story.

What Changed For Family-Based Immigration

In late 2017, President Trump called for an end to so-called “chain migration” - a term he used to describe all immigration to the United States based on family ties. Back then, Trump tried to push legislation that would alter the longstanding policy of allowing people to sponsor family members to join them legally in the U.S. That failed. But fast forward to 2020, the President has issued a series of executive orders restricting family-based immigration tied to the coronavirus crisis. 

Guest:

  • Alma Rosa Nieto, a practicing immigration attorney and Vice Chair of the American Immigration Lawyers Association’s media advocacy committee

How Trump Sought To Change The Path Towards Citizenship For Immigrants

For many immigrants, U.S. citizenship is often the goal. But that process has been slowed down and complicated. This fall, the fee to apply to become a naturalized citizen was supposed to double to more than $1,100, that is until a California judge blocked it. We discuss how President Trump sought to change the naturalization process for immigrants. 

Guest:

  • Manuel Pastor, Director of the Center for the Study of Immigrant Integration at the University of Southern California

Trump's Impact on Visas And Asylum Laws

The Trump administration has cracked down on visas -for students and highly-skilled workers- and asylum laws. These are ways that foreign nationals have been welcomed to the U.S. for many years. We discuss how things have changed in recent years.

Guest:

  • Bill Hing, Director of the Immigration and Deportation Defense Clinic at the University of San Francisco

H1-B Visa: Badal Thakker's Story

Badal Thakker went through various hoops to get an H1-B visa. He's an architectural designer who came to the U.S. from India to pursue a master's degree at the Pratt Institute. We hear his story.

What Can a Biden-Harris Administration Do For Immigration Once In Office ?

Now while President-elect Joe Biden has promised to put the coronavirus health crisis and economic recovery at the forefront during his first weeks in office, his administration is also expected to begin dismantling much of President Trump’s immigration policies, including most of the ones we’ve been hearing about today. But will the President-elect go beyond reversing the Trump administration’s most controversial policies ? Will immigration reform be a priority ? And will Congress support his agenda ?

Guests:

  • Mike Madrid, co-founder of The Lincoln Project and Republican strategist
  • Paola Ramos, former Deputy Director of Hispanic Media for the 2016 Hillary Clinton campaign and a host for VICE News