President Trump Signs Memo Ordering an End to “Catch and Release”

We are liking what we’ve seen from President Trump over the past couple of weeks. Perhaps realizing that his last, best chance to get border wall funding came and went with the last omnibus spending bill, he has turned his attention to illegal immigration with a force not seen since the campaign trail. On Friday, he took another big step towards making America’s borders great again by signing a memorandum directing his Cabinet to end the ridiculous and dangerous practice of “catch and release.”

By itself, the memo does not carry the force of law or change any official policy at the border. However, by signing it, President Trump has sent a significant directive of intent to the parts of his administration concerned with national security and immigration enforcement. The move is symbolic to an extent, but it also signals that Trump is going to add this to his agenda in the coming years. That could mean that he will begin to pressure Congress to officially change the laws…even though that will prove difficult, if the inaction over DACA and the border wall provide us with any predictive value.

Democrats and RINOs have been pressuring the White House to ease up when it comes to illegal immigration, even proposing several large-scale amnesty bills in exchange for the funding of a border wall. So far, Trump has not only resisted this pressure but has actively begun moving forward on an even more expansive and strict agenda that also includes cracking down on certain forms of legal immigration. Over the past week, Trump has set the wheels in motion for the military to begin patrolling the southern border, but that’s only the latest step in what the president promised would be a complete overhaul on how this country deals with issues of immigration.

Other things in the works include: A lawsuit against California to fight back against the state’s sanctuary laws, a plan to end the diversity visa lottery and chain migration, an effort to pass the RAISE Act, which would strictly limit immigration to only those whose migration would yield a net benefit to this country, the addition of a citizenship question to the U.S. census, and a crackdown on immigrants – legal and illegal – who benefit from any form of public welfare while staying in the United States. And all of this comes as a backdrop to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency that has been given a much broader ability to arrest and deport illegal immigrants.

In a statement announcing the latest memo, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said it was yet another step in Trump’s dedication to shoring up our national security.

“The safety and security of the American people is the president’s highest priority, and he will keep his promise to protect our country and to ensure that our laws are respected,” Sanders said. “At the same time, the president continues to call on congressional Democrats to cease their staunch opposition to border security and to stop blocking measures that are vital to the safety and security of the United States.”

Can’t say we expect that last part to come true, but perhaps the American people will at least see their obstruction for what it is and block them from achieving greater power in November. Because if they do, the Trump immigration agenda will effectively be dead in the water as far as Congress is concerned.