In an unprecedented move, a draft memo from President Trump has suggested that he will enlist the US military to “round up” undocumented immigrants, including those that are nowhere near the Mexican border.
According to the document, which is eleven pages long, up to 100,000 soldiers could be employed in the immigration enforcement sector not only on the four states which border with Mexico but with an additional seven states going further north also.
However despite the drafted memo Trump’s secretary, Sean Spicer (who’s been getting ripped apart on Saturday Night Live for his erratic demeanor), told journalists, “That is 100% not true. It is false. It is irresponsible to be saying this. There is no effort at all to round up, to utilise the National Guard to round up illegal immigrants.”
The US military has before been used to enforce immigration, they’ve always been stationed on the border. This would be the largest and most widespread deployment of soldiers used to deal with immigration in the states.
If the draft memo’s plan comes to fruition this would have an enormous effect on America’s immigrant population. Of the 11.1 million people living in America without authorisation, nearly half reside within the 11 states named in the document.
According to the signed document, Trump also intends on employing a further 5,000 agents on the US/Mexican border. If this is to happen Congress will have to fund it.
The leading Democrat in the Senate, Chuck Schumer, has called the possible round up plan “despicable”. Speaking to the press he said, “that would be one of the most un-American things that would happen in the last century and I just hope that it’s not true. The fact that it might even be considered is appalling.”