The Trump administration is reportedly planning to establish a registry for undocumented immigrants in the United States, according to The Wall Street Journal, which cited documents, including a draft regulation.
This registry would require immigrants to submit their personal information or face possible fines and imprisonment, the newspaper added.
U.S. media outlets have reported that under the Trump administration, immigration authorities are preparing a nationwide operation to locate children who entered the U.S. unaccompanied by a parent or legal guardian, potentially leading to deportation pending a judge’s decision on their legal status.
Sources familiar with the situation informed NBC News that while the exact timeline is still undetermined, the operation could commence as early as this week.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents are expected to focus on identifying children who entered the U.S. without a parent or guardian and do not have scheduled court appearances, according to NBC’s report.
Currently, many of these unaccompanied children are housed by the Office of Refugee Resettlement, part of the Department of Health and Human Services, after crossing the southern U.S.-Mexico border. These children are often placed with sponsors who are responsible for their care, and the agency follows up with monthly welfare checks by phone through contractors.
Reports indicate that the operation will primarily target children whose sponsors have not responded to welfare calls, as well as those lacking court appearances. NBC News noted that both the Biden and Trump administrations sometimes allowed children to be released before receiving court dates to alleviate crowding in refugee resettlement facilities.
Many Republicans label these unaccompanied minors as “missing children.” The Trump administration’s “zero tolerance” policy led to the separation of over 5,000 children from their parents, with no tracking system in place to facilitate their reunification.
Despite a two-year effort by the Biden administration, nearly 1,000 migrant children separated at the U.S.-Mexico border during the first Trump administration remain unreunited with their parents. In February 2023, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reported that of the 998 children still separated, 148 were in the process of being reunited.
Biden, a Democrat, issued an executive order soon after taking office in January 2021, creating a task force to reunite children separated under Trump’s administration. He referred to these separations as a “human tragedy.”
An August 2024 report from the DHS Inspector General revealed that over 291,000 children who crossed the border since fiscal year 2019, including during Trump’s tenure, had not been provided with notices to appear in court.
According to Homeland Security data, large numbers of unaccompanied minors placed with sponsors have been sent across various U.S. regions. Potential areas for raids include Maricopa County, Arizona; Los Angeles County, California; Miami-Dade County, Florida; and Prince George’s County, Maryland.
{Matzav.com}