For the past four years, America has been under attack. The previous administration’s weak-on-crime and open-borders policies invited an invasion along our southern border and an assault upon our national sovereignty, leaving countless Americans the victims of violent crime perpetrated by illegal migrants.
Stories of horrific murders, assaults, and illicit substance addiction resulting from an insecure southern border became commonplace. The suffering was so pervasive that some seemed desensitized to the tragedy of such preventable crime and loss.
But now the tide is turning.
FULL LIST OF EXECUTIVE ORDERS, ACTIONS, AND PROCLAMATIONS TRUMP HAS MADE AS PRESIDENT
For months, former President Joe Biden insisted that his hands were tied and he could not secure the border without enacting additional laws. But President Donald Trump’s swift efforts to restore our homeland security during his first week in office have heralded the return of national sovereignty, security, and the rule of law to America — and also shown that Biden was dead wrong.
On Day One, Trump signed several immigration executive orders, including authorizing the dramatic expansion of federal power to prosecute migrant crime. These efforts rightly prioritize the safety of our citizens above all else and reflect an unwavering commitment to remembering and honoring the victims of violent crime in our country.
Declaring a national emergency at the southern border was the correct first step. During the last administration, the southern border spiraled into a breeding ground for cartel and terrorist activity, violent crime, and human, weapons, and illicit substance trafficking. It is hard to imagine a more pressing national security threat than this storm on our doorstep.
Several other executive actions out of the gate should further bolster border security, including Trump’s designation of cartels as foreign terrorist organizations and his emergency authorization to deploy armed forces, construct sound physical boundaries, suspend catch-and-release policies, and curtail unauthorized migrant entry.
The president’s full-scale operation to deport unlawfully present migrants, specifically those with criminal charges, moreover sends a clear signal that there will be direct and significant consequences for those who break our laws and harm our people.
This offensive and comprehensive strategy already appears to be working, with migrant encounters at the southern border down 60% in the first week of Trump’s second term.
A slew of other orders on implementing the military in safeguarding the territorial integrity of the U.S., suspending the Refugee Admissions Program, increasing vetting standards to prevent foreign terrorism, and affording increased support to states burdened with the economic and social costs of mass migration all align the U.S. immigration response with American interests and protect our most vulnerable from violent crime.
One of the most moving events of Trump’s first weeks in office was the signing of the Laken Riley Act. The bill, a response to the senseless murder of 22-year-old Georgia nursing student Laken Riley by an illegal alien, mandates that illegal immigrants accused of theft, assault of a law enforcement officer, and other violent crimes be federally detained and potentially deported.
It will, as Trump noted during the Jan. 29 signing ceremony, save countless innocent lives from the tragedy of avoidable violence. Through this legislative action, the poignant hope of Laken Riley’s mother, Allyson Phillips, that Laken’s “life saves lives” will come to a bittersweet fruition.
At the heart of these immigration actions is a recognition of the dignity of each American life — its inherent value, purpose, and worthiness of protection. It is the government’s primary duty to safeguard its citizens from threats of all kinds.
Under the previous administration, our country was an anarchic free-for-all that welcomed, and arguably incentivized, crime and violence. Open borders are not humane. They drive violence, crime, and abuse for everyone touched by their cascading effects. They caused the tragic, preventable deaths of too many Americans such as Laken Riley.
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The fundamental American rights to liberty and the pursuit of happiness cannot be exercised if the welfare of foreign nationals is placed above our own citizens’ right to life and safety. Thankfully, this administration realizes that it is the sacred duty of our elected leaders to honor and guard these essential truths.
The Trump administration is off to a powerful start on immigration. Finally, Americans can rest assured that, at long last, their families will be free from the pervasive threat of migrant crime, that their borders will be strong, and that their nation will be secure.
Paul Teller is executive vice president of Advancing American Freedom.