March 6: Trump unveils new travel ban
Trump announces a 90 day ban on arrivals from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen, and a 120 day ban on all refugees.
Trump's quote:
"People, the lawyers and the courts can call it whatever they want, but I am calling it what we need and what it is, a TRAVEL BAN!"
Reaction:
The state of Hawaii immediately calls for and gets a temporary restraining order on the latest ban.
June 26: Supreme Court allows parts of ban to go into effect
The Supreme Court rules that the travel ban can apply if citizens of the six countries affected cannot prove any "bona fide" relationship with a U.S. national. Under these conditions, the ban goes into effect at 8pm on June 29, and the Supreme Court says it will hear the case for and against the full executive order in October.
Trump's quote:
"As president, I cannot allow people into our country who want to do us harm."
Reaction:
Democrats and pro-immigration groups vow to continue fighting the terms of the order, ahead of the Supreme Court's session in October.
August 3: Trump backs RAISE immigration act
First introduced to the Senate in February 2017, Trump gives his backing to the Reforming American Immigration for Strong Employment (RAISE) Act. The bill proposes cutting legal immigration by half over the next decade to around 500,000 per year, tightening green card rules and removing welfare for new immigrants.
Mexicans take part in an anti-Trump march in Monterrey, Mexico, on February 12, 2017. /AFP Photo
Trump's quote:
"…the most significant reform to our immigration system in half a century."
Reaction:
1,470 economists sign a letter in support of immigration's contribution to the economy, warning "the benefits that immigration brings to society far outweigh their costs."
RAISE Act still needs to go through Congress, where it is likely to meet strong resistance from Democrats and some Republicans.
