Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Trump To Block New Green Cards Instead Of Instituting Full Immigration Ban After Business Groups Protest
The New York Times: Trump Blocks Green Cards During Coronavirus
President Trump said on Tuesday that he would order a temporary halt in issuing green cards to prevent people from immigrating to the United States, but he backed away from plans to suspend guest worker programs after business groups exploded in anger at the threat of losing access to foreign labor. Mr. Trump, whose administration has faced intense criticism in recent months for his handling of the coronavirus crisis, abruptly sought to change the subject Tuesday night by resuming his assault on immigration, which animated his 2016 campaign and became one of the defining issues of his presidency. (Shear, Kanno-Youngs and Dickerson, 4/21)
The Associated Press: Trump Bars New Immigration Green Cards, Not Temporary Visas
An administration official familiar with the plans, however, said the order will apply to foreigners seeking employment-based green cards and relatives of green card holders who are not citizens. Americans wishing to bring immediate family will still be able to do so, according to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity before the plan was announced. About 1 million green cards were granted in the 2019 fiscal year, about half to spouses, children and parents of U.S. citizens. (Colvin, Spagat and Fox, 4/22)
The Washington Post: Trump To Suspend Immigration To U.S. For 60 Days, Citing Coronavirus Crisis
The president has broad authority to restrict entry into the United States — a point the Supreme Court affirmed in upholding his controversial entry ban in 2018 — and that power is perhaps no greater than during a public health emergency. State Department officials said they are still waiting for guidance from the White House regarding what types of immigrant visas will be suspended. (Miroff, Sacchetti and Jan, 4/21)
The Wall Street Journal: Trump To Bar Immigration For Family Of U.S. Citizens, Foreign Workers For 60 Days
The executive order wouldn’t impact immigrants already living in the U.S. or foreigners coming on temporary visas for work or travel. That category includes H-1B visas, which allow more than 85,000 high-skilled foreigners to come to the U.S. for at least three years to work. It also includes seasonal migrant workers who come to the U.S. annually to work on farms, where they make up about one-tenth of the agricultural workforce, and at other businesses such as resorts or county fairs. (Hackman and Ballhaus, 4/21)
Politico: Trump's Immigration Pause Falls Well Short Of Full Ban
The move angered conservatives who were hoping the president would go further. The Trump administration has already paused most routine visa processing and refugee cases during the coronavirus pandemic, meaning the president's executive order may be redundant for many already-stalled cases. Moreover, a majority of immigrants seeking green cards are already living in the U.S. (Kumar, 4/21)
The New York Times: New Immigration Limits Cause Anxiety In Families And Businesses
Families that have waited years to be reunited, businesses that rely on foreign workers, universities that recruit international students with the promise of high-paying American jobs — all of their plans faced new uncertainty on Tuesday as the Trump administration announced new temporary restrictions on permanent residency in the United States. President Trump signaled that a 60-day ban on most green cards, which could be imposed as early as Wednesday, was intended to protect work opportunities for the millions of Americans who have lost their jobs in the coronavirus pandemic. (Dickerson and Jordan, 4/21)
The Associated Press: Michigan Governor: Trump's Messaging Causes 'Greater Danger'
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Tuesday that President Donald Trump’s plan to suspend immigration is distracting from efforts to combat the coronavirus pandemic and part of “inconsistent messages” that spread fear and put the public in “greater danger.” Trump’s pronouncements about freezing immigration are “scary” for immigrants, family members hoping to immigrate to the U.S., farmers who rely on seasonal migrant workers and Canadian nurses who work in Michigan, the Democratic governor said in an interview with The Associated Press. (Eggert and Burnett, 4/22)
