Donald Trump will temporarily suspend immigration into US
What's the story
As coronavirus continues to rip the United States apart, President Donald Trump said he would be signing an executive order to temporarily suspend immigration into the country.
It was not immediately clear as to how long the "temporary arrangement" will last or what effect it would have on green cardholders.
Trump tweeted he has to protect the "great American citizens".
Here are more details.
Details
How bad is the COVID-19 situation in the US?
Coronavirus, that originated in China last year, has impacted the entire world, but currently, the US is the worst-affected nation.
Across the country, a staggering 42,308 have lost their lives, the maximum deaths in any nation. The number of infected persons stands at 786,968.
The healthcare system is overwhelmed, the economy brought to a standstill, and for the first time, oil prices turned negative.
What happened
Trump's handling of the pandemic didn't find many takers
In the fight against COVID-19 pandemic, Trump has been ridiculed from several quarters for his lax approach.
In February, he had declared the country was well-prepared to deal with the problem but just a few days later, it was known how little his administration was doing.
And now, adding to a string of earlier announcements, Trump has decided to stop immigration.
Twitter Post
You can read his tweet here
In light of the attack from the Invisible Enemy, as well as the need to protect the jobs of our GREAT American Citizens, I will be signing an Executive Order to temporarily suspend immigration into the United States!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 21, 2020
Details
Due to coronavirus, immigration activities were already on hold
As it turns out, Trump has never been a fan of immigration. Before the 2016 Presidential polls, he had announced he would come up with stricter border laws to fit into his "America First" strategy.
Even before Trump made the declaration, immigration has largely been halted in the US.
Visa offices are shut and refugee resettlement is on hold due to COVID-19.
Reactions
"Trump thinks immigrants are easiest to blame"
Trump's announcement was berated by Ali Noorani, the executive director of the National Immigration Forum.
He said it was not about policy but the message which Trump wants to send.
"He wants people to turn against 'the other.' And, regardless of the valuable contributions immigrants are making to the response and recovery, he sees immigrants as the easiest to blame," he tweeted.
Economy
Trump also wants to get economy up and running soon
Meanwhile, the Trump administration is looking to re-open the virus ravaged economy by next month.
On April 16, the White House released "Opening Up America Again" guidelines to help states.
As per the guidelines, relaxation can be given if COVID-19 cases have declined in 14 days; symptoms representing undiagnosed coronavirus cases have dipped, and hospitals have enough capacity to handle the situation.