Trump's Travel Ban to Be Replaced with Country-Specific Restrictions

September 22, 2017

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Summary: President Donald Trump’s controversial travel ban will be replaced, security officials said today.

President Donald Trump fought hard to get a travel ban against six Muslim-majority countries, but now White House officials say that the expiring ban will be replaced by restrictions that vary from country to country.

“The new restrictions, aimed at preventing security threats from entering the United States, could go into effect on Sunday after the conclusion of a 90-day policy review undertaken as part of the administration’s original travel ban. Though the restrictions would differ for each country, people living in the targeted nations could be prevented from traveling to the United States or could face increased scrutiny as they seek to obtain a visa,” The New York Times stated.

The Department of Homeland Security said that six nations were failing to comply with security standards that were made to block terrorists from entering the U.S. DHS told those six countries that if they did not increase those standards than the United States would be forced to impose stricter guidelines for entry.

DHS did not release the names of the six countries, but it said that some of the countries it had spoken to improved security for passports and improved their system to spot terrorist threats. Officials told The New York Times that the countries that had made changes will not be affected by the White House’s new policy.

“The Trump administration will ensure that the people who travel to the United States are properly vetted and those that don’t belong here aren’t allowed to enter,” Jonathan Hoffman, assistant secretary for public affairs at DHS, said.

Trump had introduced a travel ban in March but it was met with derision from civil rights groups that said it was too broad. The travel ban was revised and focused on six countries: Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen. Iraq was later removed from the list after officials deemed that it had improved screening procedures for potential travelers. The travel ban went into effect in late June but on a 90-day basis.

Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Elain Duke gave Trump recommendations for the travel ban’s replacement, according to Fox News. DHS secretary Miles Taylor said that the new recommendations will be “tough and tailored.” Another DHS official said that these new guidelines are not to punish foreign governments. Instead, the standards will be made to “protect Americans and have security.”

Meanwhile, the Justice Department is continuing its fight against the discrimination lawsuits filed because of the travel ban. The plaintiffs in those lawsuits said that the White House had illegally targeted Muslim travelers.