Trump vows ‘crackdown’ after New York attack
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump on Wednesday vowed a battery of tough measures to curb immigration after a deadly terror attack in New York, but left the White House scrambling to figure out how to fulfil his promises.
Looking to burnish his hardline image after what appeared to be the first major jihadist attack in the United States during his administration, Trump pledged sweeping changes and later called for the attacker to be put to death.
Surrounded by the cabinet, Trump — who ran for the White House on a promise to end what he called “radical Islamic terrorism” — announced he was “starting the process of terminating” America’s green card lottery.
“Diversity lottery. Diversity lottery. Sounds nice. It’s not nice,” he said. “We’re so politically correct that we’re afraid to do anything.”
The programme was created 27 years ago and awards US permanent resident visas to around 50,000 applicants from around the world each year.
According to Trump, 29-yearold Sayfullo Saipov, identified by authorities as the man who plowed a rented truck into cyclists and pedestrians on a New York City bike path Tuesday, entered the country via the pro- gramme in 2010.
Trump also floated deep changes to how terror suspects were prosecuted and said he would consider sending Saipov to Guantanamo Bay, the US military detention centre, which holds suspected foreign jihadists in Cuba.
“(We) have to come up with punishment that’s far quicker and far greater than the punishment these animals are getting right now,” Trump said.
Trump continued his hardline rhetoric on Twitter on Wednesday, calling for the attacker’s execution.
“NYC terrorist was happy as he asked to hang Isis flag in his hospital room. He killed 8 people, badly injured 12. SHOULD GET DEATH PENALTY!”, he said, using an acronym for the Islamic State jihadist group.
The White House was forced to walk back some of his comments, stressing that he was not taking executive action but looking to Congress to change decades-old laws.
“We’re going to continue pushing for and advocating for getting rid of this programme,” press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said of the green card lottery. AFP