New travel ban in the offing

‘Tough’ but ‘tailored’ entry restrictions await Trump’s approval

The Trump administration is considering replacing a part of its controversial travel ban with more-tailored restrictions that could vary from country to country, officials announced Friday.

Officials declined to say precisely what those restrictions will be, which countries they might affect or even when the president will put them into effect. The key portion of President Donald Trump’s travel ban, which bars the issuance of visas to residents of six majority-Muslim countries, is set to expire Sunday.

Trump’s travel ban had always been contemplated as a temporary measure, designed to give officials time to assess vetting procedures and the information other countries were able or willing to provide.

Officials of the Department of Homeland Security had quietly been conducting that assessment and recently delivered to the White House a critical, classified report on their findings.

Miles Taylor, counselor to acting Homeland Security Secretary Elaine Duke, said Duke recommended that the president impose restrictions that are “tough” but “tailored.”

He said the measures ultimately put in effect might vary from place to place, and they could be lifted if countries meet U.S. demands for information and other security measures.

“Quite frankly, the screening and vetting status quo for border and immigration security is not adequate,” Taylor said.

Officials said Trump had not made a final decision, and they did not say when he would. White House deputy press secretary Raj Shah said there were “contingency plans” if the ban were to expire without new restrictions in place.

In assessing vetting procedures, U.S. officials established a new “baseline” for the information officials want about foreigners hoping to come to the United States, Taylor said. In July, he added, the U.S. communicated that new baseline to countries across the world.

Many countries, he said, already met U.S. requests — using secure biometric passports, for example, and willingly passing along terrorism and criminal history information.

Others agreed to make changes and share more data. But some were either unable or unwilling to give the United States what it needed, Taylor said.

Officials declined to say what new restrictions were being considered, or whether citizens of any country could still be banned from U.S. entry outright. They also declined to say how many countries might face restrictions — though Taylor said more than six initially did not at first provide the United States with the necessary information.

A Homeland Security spokesman said this week, though, that the intention of the department’s recommendation to the White House was “not to create a ban of any sort.”