Politics

More Than 1700 Foreigners Booted From US Since 9/11 For National Security Concerns

Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images.

Saagar Enjeti White House Correspondent
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More than 1,700 individuals have been removed from the U.S. for national security concerns since September 11, 2001, a new report from the Department of Homeland Security notes.

The total figure, 1,716, “includes, but is not limited to, aliens suspected of being involved in terrorist or other security-related activities,” the report explains. The report also found that approximately 3 out of 4 convicted terrorists in the U.S. since 9/11 are foreign born nationals.

“These totals only show those aliens who were convicted or removed, and therefore, do not represent the total measure of foreign terrorist infiltration of the United States,” the White House said in a statement following the report’s release.

The report’s release follows a push by the White House to advance its immigration priorities in negotiations with Democratic lawmakers over the future of Obama-era DACA program. DACA allowed illegal immigrants brought to the U.S. as children stay and work in the U.S. without fear of deportation.

President Donald Trump ended the DACA program in September and told Congress that if it wanted to keep the protections then it had to end chain migration, include funding for a border wall, and end the diversity visa lottery system.

Democratic lawmakers however have thus far rejected any possible deal to codify DACA into law, and they are especially opposed to funding for a border wall. The president has lamented that this sticking point could mean that “DACA is dead.” Trump also touted his belief that the U.S. needs a merit based immigration system as opposed to one largely centered around family ties and country of origin.

 

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Saagar Enjeti