On Saturday, Republican Presidential candidate, Donald Trump, gave new details about how he intends to deal with illegal immigration to the US. He vowed to crack down on anyone overstaying the expiry date on their US visa, as he tried to soothe the critics alarmed by the sudden change in his stance on immigration.
During a campaign speech at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines, Trump tried to clear up confusion over his intentions to overhaul the immigration system in the US. This was after indicating last week that he may be altering plans to deport all undocumented immigrants if he wins the election in November.
His comments have upset many conservatives. They want him to stay true to the hard-line policies that helped him win their party’s Presidential candidate nomination. These include having a wall built between the US and Mexico. During his speech, the controversial billionaire claimed that he intends to install a tracking system to ensure the swift removal of immigrants who overstay their US visas, and an e-verify system, to prevent undocumented immigrants from accessing benefits.
Trump says that if US visa expiration dates are not enforced then the result is an open border. If he wins, Trump says that his first act as President, on taking office in January 2017, will be to deport the thousands of undocumented criminal immigrants who still remain in the US despite their convictions.