Travel ban draft names same countries
Official: Revision subject to change
— A draft of President Donald Trump’s revised immigration ban targets the same seven countries listed in his original executive order and exempts travelers who already have a visa to travel to the U.S., even if they haven’t used it yet.
A senior administration official said the order, which Mr. Trump revised after federal courts held up his original immigration and refugee ban, will target only those same seven Muslim-majority countries — Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan and Libya.
The official said greencard holders and dual citizens of the U.S. and any of those countries are exempt. The new draft also no longer directs authorities to single out — and reject — Syrian refugees when processing new visa applications.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the order before it’s made public. The official said the draft is subject to change ahead of its signing, which Mr. Trump said could come this week.
White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the document circulating was a draft and that a final version should be released soon.
The Wall Street Journal also reported that the current draft of the revised order focused on the seven countries but excluded those with green cards.
Ms. Sanders’ statement came on the same day that the White House cautioned for a second day that the details of new deportation directives also were still being reviewed. However, it also suggested that final orders may be issued this week.
Authorities would be empowered to immediately deport vast more undocumented immigrants as part of a crackdown being developed by the Trump administration that would change the way federal agencies enforce immigration laws.
Two draft memos signed Friday by John Kelly, the secretary of homeland security, outline an aggressive mission for the immigration authorities that would rescind policies put in place by President Barack Obama that focused mainly on removing serious criminals.
The directives appear to spare many younger immigrants brought to the country illegally as children. But some parents of children who enter unaccompanied could face prosecution under the guidelines.
The reports came on the same day that candidates to replace national security adviser Michael Flynn — ousted in the latest reluctant dismissal that was seen as having the potential to alter the White House — trekked to Mr. Trump’s estate in Florida for interviews: former United Nations Ambassador John Bolton, West Point Superintendent Lt. Gen. Robert Caslen, acting National Security Adviser Keith Kellogg and Army strategist Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster.
Mr. Trump told reporters a day earlier on Air Force One that he had a leading candidate among them.
Meanwhile, as questions deepened about ties between Mr. Trump’s administration and Vladimir Putin’s Russia, White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus denied Sunday that the two camps colluded during the 2016 presidential campaign.