Washington: US President Donald Trump on Wednesday will order the construction of a Mexican border wall - the first in a series of actions this week to crack down on immigrants, including slashing the number of refugees who can resettle in the United States and blocking Syrians and others from "terror-prone" nations from entering, at least temporarily.
During an appearance at the Department of Homeland Security on Wednesday, Mr Trump plans to sign an executive order to direct federal funds to be shifted toward the building of a wall on the southern border, a signature promise of his campaign. He has argued that doing so is vital to gaining control over the illegal flow of immigrants into the United States.
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US President-elect Donald Trump calls the assassination of Russia's ambassador to Turkey and an attack on a German market "terrible" and tells reporters "you've known my plans" on a ban on Muslims.
"Big day planned on NATIONAL SECURITY tomorrow," Trump wrote on Twitter on Tuesday night. "Among many other things, we will build the wall!"
Big day planned on NATIONAL SECURITY tomorrow. Among many other things, we will build the wall!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 25, 2017
This executive order on the wall will be signed on the day that Mexican Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray arrives in Washington to prepare for the visit of Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto at the end of the month.
The order to build the wall is likely to complicate the visit of Mr Videgaray, who as finance minister orchestrated Mr Trump's visit to Mexico before the election, a move seen by many Mexicans as tantamount to treason. He was forced to resign because of the fallout, but his reputation was restored after Mr Trump's victory, and he was given the job of foreign minister.
Another order will block visas being issued to anyone from Syria, Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, said aides and experts who asked not to be identified. Residents from many of these places are already rarely granted US visas.
The plan is in line with a ban on Muslim immigrants that Trump proposed during his campaign, arguing that such a step was warranted given concerns about terrorism. He later said he wanted to impose "extreme vetting" of refugees from Syria and other countries where terrorism was rampant, although the Obama administration had already instituted strict screening procedures for Syrian refugees that were designed to weed out anyone who posed a danger.
![Ellen Furstner, 62, of Marcola, carries a sign during an immigrant rights rally at the Oregon State Capitol in Salem.](/web/20170125081143im_/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/y/n/p/t/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gtyht7.png/1485329868931.jpg)
White House officials described the actions on the condition of anonymity on Tuesday to avoid pre-empting the planned announcement. Trump is also considering slashing, to 50,000 from 110,000, the number of refugees who could be resettled in the United States this year, they said.
"To think that Trump's first 100 days are going to be marked by this very shameful shutting of our doors to everybody who is seeking refuge in this country is very concerning," said Marielena Hincapie, the executive director of the National Immigration Law Center. "Everything points to this being simply a backdoor Muslim ban."
![Sudanese refugee Suliman Bandas, who teaches English as second language, in his classroom in Lincoln, Nebraska. Bandas ...](/web/20170125081143im_/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/y/n/p/n/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gtyht7.png/1485329868931.jpg)
For Mr Trump, whose raucous campaign rallies frequently featured chants of "Build the wall", the directive to fortify the Mexican border was not unexpected, although it may not be enough by itself to accomplish the task. Congress would need to approve any new funding necessary to build the wall, which the President has insisted Mexico will finance, despite its leaders' protestations to the contrary.
The Government Accountability Office has estimated that it could cost $US6.5 million per mile to build a single-layer fence, and an additional $US4.2 million per mile for roads and more fencing, according to congressional officials. Those estimates do not include maintenance of the fence along the nearly 2000-mile (3200-kilometre) border with Mexico. Democratic congressional leader Nancy Pelosi said she thought even Republicans might balk at spending what she said could be $US14 billion on a wall.
![Workers raise a taller fence along the Mexico-US border between the towns of Anapra, Mexico and Sunland Park, New Mexico.](/web/20170125081143im_/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/y/n/p/s/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gtyht7.png/1485329868931.jpg)
Human rights groups whose leaders have been anticipating Trump's refugee crackdown have already begun preparing legal efforts to halt them.
"We are definitely ready to stand in court and challenge any part of the executive order that flies in the face of our Constitution and our core values," Ms Hincapie said.
![Undocumented immigrants Ana Ortiz and her nephew, Rene, join community activists as they gather in front of San Fernando ...](/web/20170125081143im_/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/y/n/q/3/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gtyht7.png/1485329868931.jpg)
Detractors could launch legal challenges to the moves if all the countries subject to the ban are Muslim-majority nations, said immigration expert Hiroshi Motomura at UCLA School of Law. Legal arguments could claim the executive orders discriminate against a particular religion, which would be unconstitutional, he said.
"His comments during the campaign and a number of people on his team focused very much on religion as the target," Dr Motomura said.
![A coalition of students, immigrants, refugees and supporters fill a downtown street as they head to a rally in Seattle ...](/web/20170125081143im_/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/y/n/q/0/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gtyht7.png/1485329868931.jpg)
Trump's directive is expected to target a program the Obama administration expanded last year in response to a global refugee crisis, fuelled in large part by a large flow of Syrians fleeing their country's civil war. Former US president Barack Obama increased the overall number of refugees to be resettled in the United States to 85,000 and ordered that 10,000 of the slots be reserved for Syrians. He set the number of refugees to be resettled this year at 110,000, more than double the 50,000 Mr Trump is now considering.
It is unclear how this week's executive actions will sit with the man who would enforce them: Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly. Mr Kelly, a retired Marine general who was confirmed on Friday, struck a markedly different tone from the President during his confirmation hearing, saying the controversial south-west border wall might not "be built anytime soon".
![Yon Hui Bell, rear, holds her son, Emilio Rafael, as they join community activists in front of San Fernando Cathedral ...](/web/20170125081143im_/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/y/n/p/q/image.related.articleLeadNarrow.300x0.gtyht7.png/1485329868931.jpg)
Mr Kelly noted that when he was a Marine officer in Iraq, his forces secured stability in part by reaching out to Muslim leaders. He also vowed to promote "tolerance" and said he didn't think it was appropriate to target any group of people solely based on religion or ethnic background, including through the development of a registry.
The Department of Homeland Security declined to comment on Tuesday. But people familiar with the matter said Mr Kelly is already under intense pressure from the White House to enforce the crackdown on which Mr Trump built his campaign.
New York Times, Washington Post, Reuters