Memorandum on Additional Measures To Enhance Border Security and Restore Integrity to Our Immigration System
Issued 2019-04-29 by Donald J. Trump
Plain-English Overview
AI-generated summary explaining what this action does, who it affects, and why it matters
This memorandum directed the Attorney General and Secretary of Homeland Security to propose changes to asylum procedures at the U.S.-Mexico border. It ordered them to develop new regulations within 90 days addressing how asylum applications are processed, including setting timelines for decisions, potentially charging fees for asylum applications and work permits, and restricting when people who entered the country illegally can receive employment authorization while their cases are pending.
The action primarily affects people seeking asylum at the southern border. According to the memorandum, over 100,000 people were encountered seeking entry in March 2019, including many traveling in large groups and with children. The proposed regulations would change the procedures these asylum seekers go through and could affect their ability to work legally while waiting for their cases to be decided.
The memorandum states its purpose is to reduce what it describes as abuse of the asylum system and to ensure quicker decisions on asylum cases. It aims to have asylum applications decided within 180 days and to prevent people it characterizes as ineligible from remaining in the country during lengthy proceedings. The document frames these changes as necessary to manage immigration programs while maintaining border security.
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Constitutional Analysis
How this action fits (or doesn't) within Article II authority and existing law
This presidential memorandum ("Memorandum on Additional Measures To Enhance Border Security and Restore Integrity to Our Immigration System") provides direction to executive branch agencies. The stated purpose: "the safety and territorial integrity of the United States as well as to ensure that the Nation's immigration laws are faithfully executed, it is hereby ordered as follows: Section 1." Presidential memoranda function similarly to executive orders but are typically more narrow in scope, addressing specific agencies or implementation details. The President's authority to direct executive branch operations is grounded in Article II of the Constitution.
Memoranda are a routine administrative tool. They guide agencies on priorities, interpretation of statutes, and implementation procedures. As long as they operate within the bounds of existing law and respect congressional mandates, they are a standard exercise of presidential power that every modern administration has used.
Official Summary
Administration of Donald J. Trump, 2019 Memorandum on Additional Measures To Enhance Border Security and Restore Integrity to Our Immigration System April 29, 2019 Memorandum for the Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland Security Subject: Additional Measures to Enhance Border Security and Restore Integrity to Our Immigration System By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, and to ensure the safety and territorial integrity of the United States as well as to ensure that the Nation's immigration laws are faithfully executed, it is hereby ordered as follows: Section 1. Purpose. As noted in Proclamations 9822 and 9842 of November 9, 2018, and February 7, 2019, respectively, our immigration and asylum system is in crisis as a consequence of the mass migration of aliens across our southern border. In Proclamation 9844 of February 15, 2019, I declared a national emergency to address the security and humanitarian crisis at that border. That emergency continues to grow increasingly severe. In March, more than 100,000 inadmissible aliens were encountered seeking entry into the United States. Many aliens travel in large caravans or other large organized groups, and many travel with children