Since Jan. 20, Donald Trump has signed Executive Orders (EOs), signed a bill into law passed by Congress and pushed for actions that punish immigrants.
His obsession is to show that immigrants are “criminals,” so in the new law and the EOs, the narrative is anti-immigrant and without basis.
Promoting Self-Deportations
On March 10, Homeland Security overhauled a phone app used by immigrants to apply for asylum (CBP One), turning it into a tool that allows undocumented people living in the United States to say they are departing the country voluntarily.
In short, the CBP One app became CBP Home.
The Trump administration is encouraging “self-deportations” and is pushing people to do so by implanting a system of terror and uncertainty. The rumors about deportation raids in various cities are part of the plan.
Almost one million people were allowed into the country—normally for two years—on immigration parole under CBP One starting in early 2023. The app ceased to work right after Trump took over in January 2025.
It is unknown how many people actually would say they are leaving the country as there is no need to do so.
Gold Card for the Rich
While immigrant workers see the possibility to get a green card (the first step to get U.S. citizenship) as an almost impossible thing, wealthy foreigners could get an even better card, and of a different color: the gold card.
President Trump announced in February the United States will offer the gold card in exchange for $5 million.
“We’re going to be putting a price on that card of about $5 million and that’s going to give you green card privileges, plus it’s going to be a route to citizenship. And wealthy people will be coming into our country by buying this card,” said Trump during an interview on Feb. 26.
This is not a new idea. The EB-5 visa was created in 1990 to allure wealthy people willing to invest.
Under that program, investors (and their spouses and unmarried children under 21) can apply for lawful permanent residence—meaning they get a green card. However, they must “make the necessary investment in a commercial enterprise in the United States; and plan to create or preserve 10 permanent full-time jobs for qualified U.S. workers.”
“EB” means “employment-based,” and the number “5” indicates the visa preference that participants receive. Several countries offer a similar type of visa.
But Trump’s plan would almost eliminate investment requirements, making the gold card a “one-time payment” issue.
Immigrant Registration
Starting April 11, immigrants who have not entered the United States with a visa must register with the government. The Trump administration is “reviving” an old provision of immigration law—which wasn’t enforced—that requires all immigrants who didn’t enter the country with a visa to register and carry proof of their registration.
A new law, coming alongside this registration provision, will make it a crime not to register or not carry the proof, which means immigrants will face the threat of criminal prosecution.
The most vulnerable group is undocumented immigrants who will face a tough choice: to register—recognizing their undocumented status, thus almost inviting the authorities to arrest and deport them—or not to register and take the risk of being criminally prosecuted.
Learn more on this issue from the American Immigration Council (americanimmigrationcouncil.org).
Executive Orders
Since Donald Trump took over the White House for the second time, he has basically been running the country via EOs, ignoring Congress, even though it is controlled by his own party, the Republicans.
Here are some of his orders related to immigration:
Executive Order 14160: Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship (Jan .20)
According to the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, all those born in this country are U.S. citizens.
However, the Trump administration wants to change this as follows: “The privilege of United States citizenship does not automatically extend to persons born in the United States: (1) when that person’s mother was unlawfully present in the United States and the father was not a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident at the time of said person’s birth, or (2) when that person’s mother’s presence in the United States at the time of said person’s birth was lawful but temporary (such as, but not limited to, visiting the United States under the auspices of the Visa Waiver Program or visiting on a student, work or tourist visa) and the father was not a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident at the time of said person’s birth.”
In short, you are not a citizen of the United States if your parents are undocumented or are here temporarily.
The EO concluded that “it is the policy of the United States that no department or agency of the United States government shall issue documents recognizing United States citizenship, or accept documents issued by State, local, or other governments or authorities purporting to recognize United States citizenship, to persons: (1) when that person’s mother was unlawfully present in the United States and the person’s father was not a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident at the time of said person’s birth, or (2) when that person’s mother’s presence in the United States was lawful but temporarily, and the person’s father was not a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident at the time of said person’s birth.”
This EO was blocked temporarily by the courts.
Executive Order 14163: Realigning the United States Refugee Admissions Program (Jan. 20)
The text starts with a political statement oriented to discredit the previous administration, however, the statement is far from reality: “Over the last 4 years, the United States has been inundated with record levels of migration, including through the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP). Cities and small towns alike, from Charleroi, Pennsylvania, and Springfield, Ohio, to Whitewater, Wisconsin, have seen significant influxes of migrants.” The text continues by indicating that the United States cannot afford this amount of refugees because it compromises our resources.
Therefore, Trump says, “I direct that entry into the United States of refugees under the USRAP be suspended,” at least for 90 days. During this period, the government will establish new rules for those seeking refugee status. A strong reduction in the number of people accepted is expected.
Executive Order 14218: Ending Taxpayer Subsidization of Open Borders (Feb. 19)
This EO is simply a reinforcement of what was established by the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) of 1996—under President Bill Clinton—which is that undocumented people cannot receive public benefits. It states that “in the decades since the passage of the PRWORA, numerous administrations have acted to undermine the principles and limitations directed by the Congress through that law. Over the last 4 years, in particular, the prior administration repeatedly undercut the goals of that law, resulting in the improper expenditure of significant taxpayer resources.”
This is an attack on the Biden administration, however, there is no proof. Then, Trump added, “to prevent taxpayer resources from acting as a magnet and fueling illegal immigration to the United States, and to ensure, to the maximum extent permitted by law, that no taxpayer-funded benefits go to unqualified aliens.” This is an insistence of the old myth that immigrants come to receive money from the U.S. government.
Asylum seekers, such as Cubans, receive monetary compensation for an established period of time. But the vast majority of immigrants come here to work. When they work, they pay taxes but don’t even get benefits they pay for, for example, Social Security.
Executive Order 14224: Designating English as the Official Language of the US (March 1)
“To promote unity, cultivate a shared American culture for all citizens, ensure consistency in government operations, and create a pathway to civic engagement, it is in America’s best interest for the Federal Government to designate one—and only one—official language.”
The impact of this order is that federal documents will not be translated to any other language. It is expected that most “red states” (states where Republicans have political control) will follow suit.
Laken Riley Act: A Model of Cruelty
The Laken Riley Act became law on Feb. 28. The law took its name from Laken Riley, a young student killed in Georgia by an undocumented immigrant from Venezuela in 2024.
The Act requires that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security detain undocumented immigrants admitting to, charged with or convicted of theft-related crimes, assaulting a police officer or a crime that results in death or serious bodily injury such as drunk driving.
Critics point out that this law dispenses with due process for those immigrants accused of wrongdoing. In short, all that is needed is an accusation for an undocumented immigrant to be arrested and, ultimately, deported.
Many Democratic members of Congress sided with Republicans to approve this law, including three Democrats from the Central Valley: Jim Costa (Fresno), Adam Gray (Merced) and Josh Harder (Tracy). Activists and community-based organizations are condemning these representatives.
Undocumented Workers Paid Billions in Taxes
A new study by Americans for Tax Fairness shows the tremendous contributions of undocumented workers to the U.S. economy.
Key findings are as follows:
In 2022, the 10.9 million undocumented immigrants in the United States paid $96.7 billion in taxes. This included $19.5 billion in federal income taxes and $32.3 billion in federal payroll taxes.
At the state and local levels, undocumented immigrants contribute $37.3 billion in taxes, and in 40 of the 50 states, they paid a higher effective state/local tax rate than the top 1% of households. The top 1% of households paid an average effective state/local tax of 7.2% in 2023; the average undocumented immigrant paid an effective tax rate of 10.1% to state/local governments.
It is estimated that $40 billion–$137 billion in additional revenue could be generated each year if these individuals were granted work authorization. A less exploitable workforce would receive higher wages (and therefore pay more taxes) and result in increased tax compliance by both employers and employees.
Undocumented immigrants paid an effective federal tax rate of 5.27% in 2022, which was higher than some of the wealthiest Americans and megacorporations.
According to tax data released by ProPublica on the 400 highest earners, undocumented immigrants paid a higher effective tax rate than five of the richest Americans.
Undocumented immigrants also paid a higher effective tax rate than 55 megacorporations. These corporations had a combined pretax income of nearly $200 billion but paid only $3.7 billion in federal income taxes, 90% less than undocumented immigrants.
Undocumented immigrants represent about 5% of the total workforce, but they play even larger roles in key industries: one in seven construction workers, one in eight agricultural workers and one in 14 hospital workers.
Deporting millions of undocumented workers would reduce the economy by $1.1 trillion–$1.7 trillion, a contraction more devastating than that experienced during the 2008 financial crisis.
