Evaulating the new Trump travel ban

On March 6, President Trump signed his newly updated and revised travel ban, which replaced the previously suspended and highly controversial one. The ban’s revisions promise transparency and fairness while upholding the First Amendment right, specifically protection from religious persecution. The Department of Homeland Security released a fact sheet pointing out the main points of this executive order.

The ban, which officially begins March 16, again subjects citizens of Syria, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen to a 90-day hold on entering the U.S. The freeze period will tentatively allot the government time to establish specificities for those civilians wishing to travel or move to the U.S., in hopes of solidifying the means to prevent the entry of potential terrorists and criminals. Following negotiations with the government of Iraq, the U.S has removed the country from the banned list- under the condition that Iraq continues cooperating with the U.S. government regarding its citizens applying for a visa.

The order does not apply to permanent American citizens in those countries or people who already have valid documentation to enter the U.S. on the date of the order and after. It is not applicable either for foreign nationals on a diplomatic travel to the United Nations from the listed countries and foreign nationals coming in with the passport of a country not included in the ban. In addition, refugees already granted asylum are immune to it. It no longer puts an indefinite block on Syrian refugees, but rather suspends their entry for the next 120-days during which time agencies will review the screening process for their admission.

Furthermore, the order claims no favorites regarding religious affiliation, which was one major source of dislike from the previous ban. The revised ban provides a stronger, even more constitutional, foundation for the specific regulations and procedures- creating a tighter premise for the expulsion all together, with the intent to minimize collateral damage.