By Brendan Scanland
WASHINGTON, D.C. — As President Trump nears his 100th day in office, his administration continues to move full speed ahead with efforts to deport undocumented migrants — despite legal challenges and growing concerns about the potential economic impacts.
Civil liberties groups, individuals, states and others have filed dozens of lawsuits challenging a wide range of the administration’s directives, including revoking student visas and the use of the Alien Enemies Act, a 1798 wartime law, to deport undocumented immigrants.
“This is a time of war because Biden allowed millions of people, many of them criminals, many of them at the highest level. Other nations emptied their jails into the United States, it’s an invasion,” said President Trump last month.
“If you cross the border illegally, you will be swiftly deported and never return to the United States of America,” said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.
As the 100-day mark approaches, the White House shows no signs of letting up, despite injunctions and pushback from federal judges.
“And we also need rogue district court judges to stop acting as judicial activists, trying to block the administration from deporting illegal criminals from our nation’s interior. The American public elected the President to do this, and he’s following through with that promise,” Leavitt said.
While the administration presses forward on a key campaign promise, some immigration experts warn of unintended consequences.
“Every time we say no to a refugee or asylum seeker, never mind the morality of it, but we are just throwing away money,” said Indivar Dutta-Gupta, a Doris Duke Distinguished Fellow at Georgetown University. “Even during the Obama administration, when there was a deportation effort called Secure Communities, that for every ten immigrant workers deported, one American native-born worker lost their job.”
“People who come here from other countries actually boost the living standards of Americans, both by complementing the skills and talents of Americans. And that can happen whether you’re a researcher studying cancer cures at a university or you’re providing care or cleaning services or working in manufacturing or the hospitality industry,” Dutta-Gupta said.
Dutta-Gupta called the administration’s immigration directives “chaotic” and warned they could ultimately harm local economies and industries like agriculture.
“It is very challenging for these sectors to survive and be competitive without immigrant workers,” he said.
He added that a reduction in the workforce would not grow the economy and could prove costly for farmers, ranchers, and ultimately consumers.
“Prices in agriculture could be 10% higher within a few years,” Dutta-Gupta said.
