United States President-elect Donald Trump has announced plans to deport all unauthorized immigrants in the United States over his upcoming four-year term. In an interview aired Sunday on NBC’s Meet the Press, Trump outlined his vision for a broad crackdown on illegal immigration, which he plans to classify as a national emergency upon taking office on January 20.
Trump also intends to end birthright citizenship, a policy rooted in the 14th Amendment of the Constitution, and suggested that achieving this goal might require a constitutional amendment. The Department of Homeland Security estimates there are over 11 million unauthorized immigrants in the US. Trump acknowledged potential legal challenges and called on Congress to provide significant funding increases to support immigration enforcement efforts.
The American Immigration Council estimates the cost of deporting all unauthorized immigrants at $88 billion annually.