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Trump unveils plan to overhaul the legal immigration system

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The plan, which does not address the fate of young undocumented immigrants who were brought to the United States as children, moves U. S. immigration toward a
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump unveiled a new immigration plan Thursday to move U. S. immigration toward a “merit-based system” that prioritizes high-skilled workers over those with family already in the country.
The plan, which does not address the fate of young undocumented immigrants who were brought to the United States as children, stands little chance of advancing in Congress, where lawmakers of both parties have greeted it with skepticism.
“Today we are presenting a clear contrast,” Trump said in a speech at the White House’s Rose Garden. “Democrats are proposing open borders, lower wages and, frankly, lawless chaos. We are proposing an immigration plan that puts the jobs, wages and safety of American workers first. Our proposal is pro-American, pro-immigrant and pro-worker. It’s just common sense.”
Providing protections from deportations for such young immigrants, known as “dreamers,” has been a leading priority for Democrats since Trump sought to end the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.
But White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said earlier Thursday that the plan does not include those protections because the issue is too divisive.
“Every single time we have put forward or anyone else has put forward any type of immigration plan and it’s included DACA, it’s failed. It’s a divisive thing,” Sanders told reporters at the White House, adding that the issue was “left out on purpose.”
Trump said in his Rose Garden remarks that the plan would not change the number of green cards allocated each year but would prioritize high-skilled workers over those with family already in the country. It would allow applicants to rack up eligibility based on factors such as age, ability to speak English, job offers and educational background.
“If adopted, our plan will transform America’s immigration system into the pride of our nation and the envy of the modern world,” he said.
He blasted the country’s current immigration laws as “senseless,” arguing that awarding some green cards by lottery “is contrary to American values” and calling for the U. S. to “create a clear path for top talent.”
Trump’s son-in-law and White House adviser Jared Kushner, who helped develop the plan, previewed it with other Trump aides in private briefings for lawmakers over the past week. But there appears to be no clear path toward advancing the plan through Congress.
White House aides emphasized that Trump is enthusiastically on board with an effort to demonstrate that he endorses legal immigration to help U. S. companies even as he has railed against other groups, including immigrant families seeking asylum and refugees.
The DACA program, created by President Barack Obama through executive action in 2012, has provided renewable two-year work permits to more than 800,000 immigrants who arrived as children.
Trump moved to terminate the program in fall 2017, calling it unconstitutional, but federal courts have enjoined the administration from stripping the protections from those already enrolled, and the case could come before the Supreme Court in the next term.

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