Prez outlines border crackdown

Newly sworn-in US President Donald Trump said on Monday he will declare illegal immigration at the US-Mexico border a national emergency, send troops there and ramp up deportations of criminal offenders, outlining the crackdown in his inaugural address.

Trump said be would invoke a 1798 law known as the Alien Enemies Act to target foreign gang members in the US, a legal authority last used to detain noncitizens of Japanese, German, and Italian descent in internment camps during World War Two.

Shortly after the inauguration, US border authorities said they had shut down outgoing President Joe Biden's legal entry program known as CBP One that had allowed hundreds of thousands of migrants to enter the U.S. legally by scheduling an appointment on an app. Existing appointments were cancelled, according to the US Customs and Border Protection department.

Trump said he would designate criminal cartels as foreign terrorist organizations, part of a slate of moves that could shake up US-Mexico relations.

Earlier, a Trump official who asked not to be named said the new president plans to issue a sweeping proclamation blocking access to all seeking asylum at the Mexico border.

Trump also intends to challenge US citizenship for children born to parents in the US illegally, the official said, a right that stems from an amendment to the US Constitution.

Trump, a Republican, recaptured the White House after promising to intensify border security and deport record numbers of migrants. While Trump criticized Democrat Biden for high levels of illegal immigration during his presidency, migrant arrests fell dramatically after Biden toughened his policies in June and as Mexico stepped up enforcement.

Republicans say large-scale deportations are necessary after millions of immigrants crossed illegally during Biden's presidency. There were roughly 11 million immigrants in the US illegally or with a temporary status at the start of 2022, according to a U.S. government estimate, a figure that some analysts now place at 13 million to 14 million.

Trump's critics and immigrant advocates say mass deportations could disrupt businesses, split families and cost US taxpayers billions of dollars.

The American Civil Liberties Union and other groups have been preparing for possible litigation, a strategy that stymied many of Trump's hardline policies during his first term. California and other Democratic-led states that have policies limiting cooperation with federal immigration enforcement also could clash with Trump.

Americans have grown less welcoming toward immigrants without legal status since Trump's first presidency, but remain wary of harsh measures such as using detention camps, a Reuters/Ipsos poll in December found.

The official said Trump would take 10 executive orders and actions on Monday aimed at stepping up border security, calling illegal immigration an “invasion.”

The official said Trump would take steps intended to end birthright citizenship for US-born children whose parents lack legal immigration status. That move will almost certainly trigger legal challenges.

His deportation plans are a ‘disgrace’: Pope

rome: Pope Francis said Donald Trump’s plans to impose mass deportations of immigrants would be a “disgrace”, as he weighed in on Trump’s pledges nearly a decade after calling him “not Christian” for wanting to build a wall along the US-Mexican border. Francis said he prayed that America would live up to its ideals of being a “land of opportunity and welcome for all.” — AP

Biden-era app that allowed in 1mn immigrants shut

washington: The Trump administration Monday ended use of a border app called CBP One that has allowed nearly 1 million people to legally enter the United States with eligibility to work. A notice on the website of Customs and Border Protection on Monday just after Trump was sworn in let users know that the is no longer available. — AP

American markets optimistic, stocks trade higher

new york: During Trump’s speech, stock futures traded higher, with contracts on the Standard & Poor’s 500 index, the Nasdaq 100 index and the Dow Jones Industrial Average trading up between 0.4% and 0.5%. The dollar, however, weakened ahead of the inauguration. — Reuters