How Trump is building a border wall that no one can see
President Trump’s  vision of a “big  beautiful” wall along the Mexican border may never be realized  and almost certainly not as a 2 000-mile physical structure spanning sea to sea.
But in a systematic and less visible way   his  administration is following a blueprint to reduce the number of foreigners living in the United States — those who are undocumented and those here legally — and overhaul the U.S. immigration system for generations to come.
 Trump administration officials  say  they  are simply upholding laws  their  predecessors did not and preserving American jobs. Previous Republican and Democratic administrations were too soft on enforcement  they say  and too rosy in their view of immigration as an unambiguously positive force.
 Bob Dane  executive director of the Federation for American Immigration Reform  which has pushed for many of the Trump administration’s main goals on immigration   said the president has “really scaled back this expansive view of immigration that occurred under the Obama administration.”
The new restrictions could significantly reduce the number of foreign-born workers in the U.S. labor force  but demographic experts say there is little chance they will alter the country’s broader racial and ethnic transformation  which Trump’s critics say is his goal. Census projections show the United States will no longer have a single racial or ethnic majority by mid-century  according to the Pew Research Center.
Even as they fight court orders seeking to halt parts of Trump’s immigration agenda  Sessions  White House senior adviser Stephen Miller and other key players are finding ways to shrink the immigration system. Miller was an aide to Sessions before both men joined the administration; in less than a year  their immigration policy prescriptions have moved from the realm of think-tank wish lists to White House executive orders.
Trump has endorsed GOP legislation to cut annual  legal immigration by half  reducing the number of green cards issued annually from about 1 million to 500 000. More weight would be given to immigrants with job skills  as opposed to those with extended family in the United States.
[Trump’s proposal for a ‘solar’ border wall appears to be dead]
Trump also eliminated a smaller program specifically for refugees fleeing violence in Central America. The Pentagon  citing concerns about vetting  suspended a recruitment program offering skilled foreigners a fast track to citizenship if they serve in uniform.
 Trump  is also ending Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals  or DACA  the Obama administration program that granted work permits to 690 000 young immigrants brought here as children.  Trump’s  administration is expanding immigration courts and detention centers and has ratcheted up deportations from the interior of the United States  where millions of undocumented immigrants with U.S.-born children and no serious criminal records held little fear of expulsion under President Barack Obama.
The president and his aides have pressed forward despite an outcry from advocates and Democratic lawmakers  who in states such as California and Illinois have instructed police and public officials to shun cooperation with ICE.  The Trump administration  has threatened to strip such “sanctuary” jurisdictions of federal funding in an escalating legal standoff.
 Trump ’s tough talk alone appears to be one of  the administration’s  best bulwarks: Illegal crossings along the border with Mexico have plunged to their lowest level in 45 years  and U.S. agents are catching a far greater share of those attempting to sneak in. Applications for H-1B skilled visas and new foreign-student enrollment have also declined.
But although some of Trump’s most fervent supporters see curbing immigration as a way to turn back the United States’ rapid racial and ethnic transformation  Frey said it is an unrealistic goal. By 2020  census projections show minorities will account for more than half of the under-18 U.S. population  because of higher birthrates in nonwhite populations. And by 2026  the number of whites is projected to begin declining in absolute numbers  he said  as deaths exceed births.
 Trump  continues to insist  his  administration will build a border wall  despite exorbitant cost projections and senior DHS officials saying a 2 000-mile structure is impractical.  His  supporters say they admire the president for plowing ahead in  his  overhaul efforts and see a historic  generational shift underway.
“There is more than one way to get to the goal ”  Dane  said. “Legislative solutions are all great  but clearly  the administration  has done things behind the scenes. . . . The results have been dramatic.”
President Trump’s  vision of a “big  beautiful” wall along the Mexican border may never be realized  and almost certainly not as a 2 000-mile physical structure spanning sea to sea.
But in a systematic and less visible way   his  administration is following a blueprint to reduce the number of foreigners living in the United States — those who are undocumented and those here legally — and overhaul the U.S. immigration system for generations to come.
 [TGT]say  [TGT]  are simply upholding laws  [TGT]  predecessors did not and preserving American jobs. Previous Republican and Democratic administrations were too soft on enforcement  they say  and too rosy in their view of immigration as an unambiguously positive force.
 Bob Dane  executive director of the Federation for American Immigration Reform  which has pushed for many of the Trump administration’s main goals on immigration   said the president has “really scaled back this expansive view of immigration that occurred under the Obama administration.”
The new restrictions could significantly reduce the number of foreign-born workers in the U.S. labor force  but demographic experts say there is little chance they will alter the country’s broader racial and ethnic transformation  which Trump’s critics say is his goal. Census projections show the United States will no longer have a single racial or ethnic majority by mid-century  according to the Pew Research Center.
Even as they fight court orders seeking to halt parts of Trump’s immigration agenda  Sessions  White House senior adviser Stephen Miller and other key players are finding ways to shrink the immigration system. Miller was an aide to Sessions before both men joined the administration; in less than a year  their immigration policy prescriptions have moved from the realm of think-tank wish lists to White House executive orders.
[TGT] has endorsed GOP legislation to cut annual  legal immigration by half  reducing the number of green cards issued annually from about 1 million to 500 000. More weight would be given to immigrants with job skills  as opposed to those with extended family in the United States.
[Trump’s proposal for a ‘solar’ border wall appears to be dead]
[TGT] also eliminated a smaller program specifically for refugees fleeing violence in Central America. The Pentagon  citing concerns about vetting  suspended a recruitment program offering skilled foreigners a fast track to citizenship if they serve in uniform.
 [TGT]is also ending Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals  or DACA  the Obama administration program that granted work permits to 690 000 young immigrants brought here as children.  Trump’s  administration is expanding immigration courts and detention centers and has ratcheted up deportations from the interior of the United States  where millions of undocumented immigrants with U.S.-born children and no serious criminal records held little fear of expulsion under President Barack Obama.
The president and his aides have pressed forward despite an outcry from advocates and Democratic lawmakers  who in states such as California and Illinois have instructed police and public officials to shun cooperation with ICE.  The Trump administration  has threatened to strip such “sanctuary” jurisdictions of federal funding in an escalating legal standoff.
 [TGT] ’s tough talk alone appears to be one of  the administration’s  best bulwarks: Illegal crossings along the border with Mexico have plunged to their lowest level in 45 years  and U.S. agents are catching a far greater share of those attempting to sneak in. Applications for H-1B skilled visas and new foreign-student enrollment have also declined.
But although some of Trump’s most fervent supporters see curbing immigration as a way to turn back the United States’ rapid racial and ethnic transformation  Frey said it is an unrealistic goal. By 2020  census projections show minorities will account for more than half of the under-18 U.S. population  because of higher birthrates in nonwhite populations. And by 2026  the number of whites is projected to begin declining in absolute numbers  he said  as deaths exceed births.
 [TGT]continues to insist  [TGT]  administration will build a border wall  despite exorbitant cost projections and senior DHS officials saying a 2 000-mile structure is impractical.  [TGT]  supporters say they admire the president for plowing ahead in  his  overhaul efforts and see a historic  generational shift underway.
“There is more than one way to get to the goal ”  Dane  said. “Legislative solutions are all great  but clearly  the administration  has done things behind the scenes. . . . The results have been dramatic.”