WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Thursday he wants to keep immigrants who are apprehended at the border in detention until their asylum cases are heard, rather than be released into the U.S. while awaiting their hearings.
The remarks are the latest in a series of hard-line immigration pledges the president has made ahead of midterm elections next week. It follows on the heels of a plan to send thousands of U.S. troops to support border-control efforts and Trump’s claim that he intends to use an executive order to end birthright citizenship for children born to illegal immigrants, something legal scholars said would be unconstitutional.
In his remarks Thursday, Trump said he plans to sign a “comprehensive” executive order next week about holding apprehended migrants, including those seeking asylum status. Trump gave few details, but said the plan would involves housing migrants in tents and other facilities.
Trump defended the legality of the plan, amid questions about how it would comply with U.S. law governing the treatment of asylum seekers and their children. Trump again highlighted caravans of migrants in Mexico headed to the U.S. from Honduras. He said: “They should turn back now — they are wasting their time.”
An expanded version of this report appears on WSJ.com.
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