NPR: “Trump order cracks down on antisemitism and could deport foreign student protesters”
Yesterday, President Trump issued an Executive Order entitled Additional Measures to Combat Anti-Semitism. Section 3(e) of the order provides that
“[i]n addition to identifying relevant authorities to curb or combat anti-Semitism generally required by this section, the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Education, and the Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with each other, shall include in their reports recommendations for familiarizing institutions of higher education with the grounds for inadmissibility under 8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(3) so that such institutions may monitor for and report activities by alien students and staff relevant to those grounds and for ensuring that such reports about aliens lead, as appropriate and consistent with applicable law, to investigations and, if warranted, actions to remove such aliens.”
8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(3) provides for security and related grounds for finding a noncitizen inadmissibile into the United States. It generally provides that
“[a]ny alien who a consular officer or the Attorney General knows, or has reasonable ground to believe, seeks to enter the United States to engage solely, principally, or incidentally in–
(i) any activity (I) to violate any law of the United States relating to espionage or sabotage or (II) to violate or evade any law prohibiting the export from the United States of goods, technology, or sensitive information,
(ii) any other unlawful activity, or
(iii) any activity a purpose of which is the opposition to, or the control or overthrow of, the Government of the United States by force, violence, or other unlawful means,
is inadmissible.” (bold added).
NPR reports that the executive order
“outlines a broad federal crackdown on antisemitism in the U.S., especially on college campuses, and suggests foreign students who take part in prohibited activities like supporting terrorist organizations could be deported.
The order cites `an unprecedented wave of vile anti-Semitic discrimination, vandalism and violence’ and states that U.S. policy `shall be’ to use `all available and appropriate legal tools to prosecute, remove, or otherwise hold to account the perpetrators of unlawful anti-Semitic harassment and violence.’ It also directs all U.S. department and agency heads to come up with new means they could employ to combat antisemitism within 60 days.
Trump’s order refers to existing immigration law that authorizes the deportation of a non-citizen who `endorses or espouses terrorist activity or persuades others to endorse or espouse terrorist activity or support a terrorist organization.’ The U.S. government officially considers Hamas a terrorist organization.” (bold added).
KJ