Trump says he will halt immigration

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump said yesterday he would suspend all immigration into the United States temporarily through an executive order in response to the coronavirus outbreak and to protect American jobs.

The move, which the Republican president announced on Twitter, effectively achieves a longterm Trump policy goal to curb immigration, making use of the health and economic crisis that has swept the country as a result of the pandemic to do so.

The decision drew condemnation from some Democrats, who accused the president of creating a distraction from what they view as a slow and faulty response to the coronavirus.

Trump said he was taking the action to protect the US workforce. Millions of Americans are suffering unemployment after companies shed employees amid nationwide lockdowns to stop the contagion.

‘‘In light of the attack from the Invisible Enemy, as well as the need to protect the jobs of our GREAT American Citizens, I will be signing an Executive Order to temporarily suspend immigration into the United States,’’ Trump said in the tweet.

The White House declined to offer further details about the reasoning behind the decision, its timing or its legal basis.

‘‘As our country battles the pandemic, as workers put their lives on the line, the President attacks immigrants & blames others for his own failures’’, former Democratic presidential candidate Amy Klobuchar said in a tweet.

Immigration is largely halted into the United States anyway thanks to border restrictions and flight bans put in place as the virus spread across the globe.

But the issue remains an effective rallying cry for Trump’s supporters.

The US death toll from the virus stood at 42,364 yesterday, according to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Research Centre.

The US economy has come to a near standstill because of the pandemic; more than 22 million people have applied for unemployment benefits in the past month.

‘‘You cut off immigration, you crater our nation’s already weakened economy,’’ former Democratic presidential candidate Julian Castro said in a tweet. ‘‘What a dumb move.’’

The United States has the world’s largest number of confirmed coronavirus cases, with 787,901 infections as of yesterday, up 25,200 from the previous day.

However, the president has made a point of saying the peak had passed and has been encouraging US states to reopen their economies. — Reuters