Make America Great Again. America First. Promises made, promises fulfilled.
This is the context in which President Donald J. Trump’s Executive Orders on immigration should be read. Trump is not anti-alien. He married an alien. His wife, Melania, is from Novo Mesto, Slovenia. She is a naturalized citizen. Trump is for aliens – the good kind. Or the good-looking kind.
The following are President Trump’s Executive Orders related to immigration which he signed on his first day in office – January 20, 2025:
1. Protecting the American People Against Invasion.
2. Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship.
3. Realigning the United States Refugee Admissions Program.
4. Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government.
5. Securing Our Borders
6. Clarifying the Military’s Role in Protecting the Territorial Integrity of the United States.
7. Protecting the United States from Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats.
8. America First Policy Directive to the Secretary of State.
9. Designating Cartels and Other Organizations as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists.
We shall discuss these Executive Orders in this article and in subsequent articles.
What Is An Illegal Alien?
For purposes of this article and subsequent articles, the term “illegal alien” refers to a foreign-born person who:
– entered the U.S. without inspection,
– entered the U.S. with a temporary visa but stayed longer than their temporary visa permitted or violated the conditions of their visa, or
– does not have some form of temporary protected status.
President Trump’s Executive Orders use the term “illegal alien.”
The Immigration and Nationality Act does not use the term “undocumented alien.”
The Biden administration reportedly ordered U.S. Immigration authorities to stop using the term “illegal alien” and use the term “undocumented noncitizen”. If so, he was simply catering to the so-called “politically correct” but legally wrong.
Let us call a spade a spade (“tell it like it is” or call something by its proper name without sugarcoating it, even if it might seem unpleasant).
Illegal Entry Is A Crime
Illegal entry is a misdemeanor or a felony depending on the facts.
The Immigration and Nationality Act provides in § 275 [8 USC § 1325]. “(a) Improper time or place; avoidance of examination or inspection; misrepresentation and concealment of facts. Any alien who (1) enters or attempts to enter the United States any time or place other than as designated by immigration officers, or (2) eludes examination or inspection by immigration officers, or (3) attempts to enter or obtains entry to the United States by a willfully false or misleading representation or the willful concealment of a material fact, shall, for the first commission of any such offense, be fined under title 18 or imprisoned not more than 6 months, or both, and, for a subsequent commission of any such offense, be fined under title 18, or imprisoned not more than 2 years, or both.
(b) Improper time or place; civil penalties. Any alien who is apprehended while entering (or attempting to enter) the United States at a time or place other than as designated by immigration officers shall be subject to a civil penalty of— (1) at least $50 and not more than $250 for each such entry (or attempted entry); or (2) twice the amount specified in paragraph (1) in the case of an alien who has been previously subject to a civil penalty under this subsection.
Civil penalties under this subsection are in addition to, and not in lieu of, any criminal or other civil penalties that may be imposed.”
(c) Marriage fraud. Any individual who knowingly enters into a marriage for the purpose of evading any provision of the immigration laws shall be imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or fined not more than $250,000, or both.
In the succeeding articles, we shall discuss the various Trump Executive Orders on Immigration starting with Protecting the American People Against Invasion.
The information provided in this article is for general information only. It is not legal advice. Publication of this information is not intended to create, and receipt by you or reading by you does not establish or constitute an attorney-client relationship.
ATTY. EMMANUEL S. TIPON was a Fulbright and Smith-Mundt scholar to Yale Law School where he was awarded a Master of Laws degree specializing in Constitutional Law. He graduated with a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of the Philippines. He placed third in the 1955 bar examinations. He is admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court, New York, and the Philippines. He practices federal law, with emphasis on constitutional issues, immigration law, and appellate federal criminal defense. He was the Dean and a Professor of Law of the College of Law, Northwestern University, Philippines. He has written law books and legal articles for the world’s most prestigious legal publishers including Thomson West and Lawyers Co-operative Publishing Co. and writes columns for newspapers. He wrote the case notes and annotations for the entire Immigration and Nationality Act published by The Lawyers Co-operative Publishing Co. and Bancroft-Whitney Co. (now Thomson Reuters). He wrote the best-seller “Winning by Knowing Your Election Laws.” Atty. Tipon was born in Laoag City, Philippines. Cell Phone (808) 225-2645. E-Mail: attorneytipon@gmail.comfilamlaw@yahoo.com. Website: https://www.tiponimmigrationguide.com
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