President Donald Trump is promoting the CBP Home app to urge undocumented immigrants to voluntarily leave the United States “the easy way,” because deportation “the hard way… isn’t pleasant,” referring to actions by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.
“People who are in our country without documents can self-deport the easy way or the hard way, and that isn’t pleasant,” Trump says in a video released by the White House.
Trump claims that President Joe Biden’s administration “pushed the limit” of the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency “to allow more than one million foreigners to enter the United States illegally.”
The president is referring to the CBP One app, through which the Biden administration allowed immigrants to schedule border appointments for temporary protection under sponsorship by someone living in the U.S.
“Now, my administration is launching the CBP Home app to give people who are in our country without documents an easy way to leave now and self-deport voluntarily,” Trump says.
The president says those who self-deport will have the opportunity to return legally to the country, but there is no clarity on the application of penalties of up to 10 years under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).
“If they do, they could have the opportunity to return legally in the future, but if they don’t take this opportunity, they will be found, deported, and never admitted to the United States again. Never again, never again,” Trump said. “Using the CBP Home app to leave the United States voluntarily is the safest option for undocumented foreigners and law enforcement.”
Trump echoes the app’s original launch message, delivered by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who noted that self-deportation will help the U.S. save resources to focus on immigrants with criminal records.
“This also saves American taxpayers money and valuable CBP and ICE resources, and all those resources are needed to focus on dangerous criminal foreigners, and that’s what we’re focusing on,” Trump stated, though immigration operations include any undocumented individual.
Trump reminded that the CBP Home app is available for free in all mobile app stores.
“I encourage those who have violated our laws to use this option today. If you do it the right way, come back to our country. If you do it the wrong way, you’ll never return,” the Republican concluded.
Image: Opinion
