Trump weighs total ban on refugees

The Trump Administration is considering letting in a sum total of zero refugees next year, with a few specific exceptions.

While Trump has cited security concerns for his refugee admission policy, “zeroing out refugee admissions won’t make Americans safer. The opposite is true,” notes David Kampf in Foreign Policy.

Meanwhile, Democrats on Capitol Hill are taking action on possible refugee cap reductions by Trump.

Reps. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y. and Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., the respective chairs of the House Judiciary Committee and Immigration and Citizenship Subcommittee “demanded that the Trump Administration administration consult with Congress before determining the number of refugee admissions to the country for the coming fiscal year,” writes Tal Axelrod in the Hill.

Axelrod reports that in a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan and Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, Nadler and Lofgren “pointed to a law mandating the administration discuss the refugee admissions with Congress, noting that fiscal year 2020 is 17 days away.”

Supreme Court ruling could change equation for refugee admissions

Acting U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Ken Cuccinelli recently suggested “that contemplated reductions in refugee admissions might be scaled back following a Supreme Court asylum ruling Wednesday evening,” reports Ted Hesson in Politico.

The Supreme Court “is allowing nationwide enforcement of a new Trump administration rule that prevents most Central American migrants from seeking asylum in the United States,” the AP reported.

“With a reduction in asylum cases, Cuccinelli suggested, resources might be redirected to processing refugee claims. Asylum applies to migrants who seek refuge at the border or inside the U.S.,” Hesson wrote.