President Donald Trump’s administration released a newly revised immigration order last week.
The new order now excludes Iraq from its list of countries. Any individual who had a valid Visa by January 27 will be permitted to enter the United States.
No Visas will be revoked in this order and only those who do not have Visas will be refused entry.
This order was designed to pass through any challenge issued by the court system.
Trump has had a couple of tumultuous weeks. After receiving praise for a speech to a joint session of Congress, in which many people called him “presidential,” the new Attorney General, Jeff Sessions, came under fire for reportedly lying about contact with Russia during his confirmation hearing.
Sessions has since recused himself from the investigations into Russia while he is under scrutiny from the FBI.
Trump then issued a tweet accusing former president Barack Obama of wiretapping the Trump Tower in New York.
“Terrible! Just found out that Obama had my ‘wires tapped’ in Trump Tower just before the victory,” Trump said on Twitter. “Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!”
The White House has not provided evidence of this, but has asked for a congressional probe.
Senior officials told the New York Times that FBI Director James Comey reportedly asked the Justice Department to refute Trump’s claims, but no such statement has been made by the Justice Department.
Trump’s executive order has marked a return to a narrative he oft repeated during his campaign against illegal immigration and his pledge to prevent terror attacks in the United States.
“We cannot allow a beachhead of terrorism to form inside America,” he said in his speech to Congress. “And we cannot allow our nation to become a sanctuary for extremists.”
Iran, Syria, Yemen, Sudan, Libya and Somalia will face a 90 day freeze on all traveling and there will be a refugee suspension of 120 days.
Massachusetts’ Attorney General issued a statement calling the immigration order a “watered down redraft.”
“My office remains opposed to this misguided policy and will consider all legal options to protect our residents, our institutions and our businesses in Massachusetts,” she said in her statement.
In a press conference, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson stated that this “revised order will bolster the security of the United States and her allies.”
Sessions called the order a “needed pause” for the United States.
The order will not take effect until March 16.
Laina Yost
Managing Editor