Washington, January 21 (RHC)-- During his inaugural address, Trump declared a national emergency at the southern border, saying his administration’s top priority would be mass deportations of “millions and millions of criminal aliens.”   

Trump also said he would reintroduce his “Remain in Mexico” policy for asylum seekers.  And he rescinded a Biden-era interagency task force set up to reunite families separated at the border during Trump’s first term.

Just moments after Trump took office, the Customs and Border Protection’s CBP One smartphone app, which provides a path for people to apply for asylum at the U.S. border, stopped working.  All appointments to hear claims for refugee status on the app have been canceled. 

President Trump also set up a return to his first administration’s travel ban on citizens from several predominantly Muslim nations, issuing an order directing a 60-day study to come up with a list of countries.

Meanwhile, on Monday, the Senate approved the Laken Riley Act, a bill to mandate immigration detention for undocumented immigrants charged with crimes, including nonviolent offenses.   Twelve Democratic senators joined Republicans voting for the bill; that follows 48 House Democrats who sided with Republican representatives to approve the legislation.