On Saturday 19^th of January, US President Donald Trump suggested an immigration deal to end the government shutdown. This shutdown has led to the closure of several federal administrations for more than four weeks now. Indeed, Trump has refused to sign a congressional spending plan that did not give him the necessary funding for building a wall along the southern border with Mexico. In this proposal, Trump raised the possibility of giving legal status to millions of undocumented people. The president declared in a tweet on Sunday that the proposal only provided, for now, extending temporary legal protection for some refugees and people who were brought to the US illegally as children. He also said that there would no “big push” to deport people already living illegally in the United States.

However, senior Democratic leaders have dismissed this proposal. Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic speaker of the House of Representatives, described Trump’s plan as “a compilation of several previously rejected initiatives”. Trump’s proposal also provoked hostile reactions among many on the Republican right. Some conservatives have indeed rejected the offer, calling it as an amnesty itself. Senate Majority Leader Mitch Mc Connell said that the bill “will come up for a vote in the coming week”. Nevertheless, the bill offers little hope for ending the shutdown.

Laura van Lerberghe

For further information :

The Guardian, « Shutdown: Trump ‘amnesty’ hint angers right and fails to draw Democrats », https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/jan/20/government-shutdown-donald-trump-amnesty-migrants

Politico, « Democrats reject Trump’s bid to end shutdown », https://www.politico.eu/article/donald-trump-migration-shutdown-democrats-reject-trumps-bid-to-negotiate-on-immigration-for-his-wall/