Donald Trump ‘to dramatically expand travel ban to SEVEN more Muslim-majority countries’ – The Sun
PRESIDENT Trump is considering dramatically extending his controversial travel ban to SEVEN more Muslim-majority countries, it was reported on Friday.
Sources confirmed the news as a document detailing the plan was passed around the White House, reports The Associated Press.
The announcement will reportedly coincide with the third anniversary of Trump’s explosive January 2017 executive order.
This is thought to be a way of appealing to Trump's base as the president's election campaign gets into full swing.
Two insiders said seven more countries who will be affected by this were blacked out of the circulated document.
But the majority of the additional nations added to the travel ban are thought to be predominantly Muslim.
There were travel restrictions on five Muslim nations, Iran, Libya, Syria, Yemen and Somalia initially.
Trump's contentious travel ban was then extended to North Korea, Venezuela and Chad.
NEW TARGETS
The expansion could include countries initially covered in the first iteration of Trump’s ban but these nations were later removed from the list.
Iraq, Sudan and Chad were originally been affected by the order, which the Supreme Court upheld in a 5-4 vote.
This came after the administration released a watered-down version to withstand increasing legal scrutiny.
Trump toyed with the idea of banning all Muslims from entering the country during his 2016 campaign.
He criticized the Justice Department on Twitter, saying they “should have stayed with the original Travel Ban, not the watered down, politically correct version."
But allies who have fallen short in terms of security measures may also find themselves on the updated list.
The Department of Homeland Security officials suggested the restrictions after reviewing security protocols and “identity management” for 200 countries.
'IMPORTING TERRORISM'
White House spokesperson Hogan Gidley praised the travel ban, saying "we do not want to import terrorism or any other national security threat."
He said: "If a country wants to fully participate in US immigration programs, they should also comply with all security and counter-terrorism measures."
The controversial ban in January 2017 was announced days after Trump took office prompting nationwide protests.
The current ban suspends immigrant and non-immigrant visas to applicants from the affected countries.
Exceptions include students and those who have established “significant contacts” in the US.
This was a softening of the initial order, which suspended travel from Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen for 90 days.
That version blocked refugee admissions for 120 days and suspended travel from Syria.
LEGAL ROAD BLOCKS
Trump's initial order was immediately blocked by the US courts prompting the administration develop clear standards and federal review processes.
Restrictions are now aimed at countries who don't share adequate information with the US, states the Department of Homeland Security.
The targeted nations have not issued electronic passports with bio-metric information and shared information about travelers’ terror-related or criminal histories.
Countries that comply can have their restrictions lifted but others who fail to do so new restrictions and limitations.
But Trump is facing issues on home ground after a coalition of leading civil rights organizations urged House leaders to take up the No Ban Act.
The legislation announced this week would end Trump’s travel ban and prevent a new one by imposing limits on the president’s ability to restrict US entry.
The Trump administration would have to spell out the reasons behind their restrictions in order to prevent religious discrimination.
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