Immigration policy grows more chaotic and divisive

Our immigration policy has long been complicated and contentious; however, President Donald Trump’s actions and rhetoric have brought immigration policy to a level of confusion and divisiveness not seen before.

The current chaos began during the 2016 presidential campaign when Trump promised that he would make Mexico pay for a border wall. He said that the wall was necessary to keep out undocumented immigrants who were mainly “drug dealers” and “rapists.”

Following the elections, it became clear that Trump expected the American taxpayer to foot the bill for any border wall. Moreover, several independent studies have shown that crime rates are lower for undocumented immigrants than for native born Americans. Nevertheless, Trump continues to insist that we need and must pay for the wall.

In September 2017, Trump revoked President Barack Obama’s executive order that protected the “Dreamers” from deportaoften tion and instructed Congress to deal with the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals issue by March 2018.

On Jan. 9, Trump presided over a meeting with Republican and Democratic lawmakers to discuss the DACA issue. At the meeting, Trump indicated that he would sign “any immigration bill Congress would send him.”

On Jan. 11, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-south Carolina, and Dick Durbin, D-illinois, presented Trump with a bipartisan immigration bill. Trump rejected the bill, contrary to his earlier promise.

In May, the Trump administration began to enforce a “zero tolerance” policy that separated immigrant children from their parents. However, public outcry from all sectors of our country forced Trump to rescind the policy. Many families remain separated.

Recently, Trump threatened to shut down the government over border wall funding — and on it goes. Don steiner Schenectady