By Alex Leary and Louise Radnofsky
WASHINGTON—A draft of the executive order that the Trump administration was prepared to introduce to begin tariffs on all Mexican imports laid out in detail areas where the U.S. considered Mexico falling short in its efforts to stem migration.
“Mexico’s failure to check the incursion of illegal aliens into the United States imposes a staggering burden on our communities,” reads the 11-page document obtained by The Wall Street Journal.
White House officials described the draft as an early version that was subsequently changed, but they declined to describe the changes. It serves as a reminder of the high-stakes drama over President Trump’s tariff threat that triggered bipartisan opposition from lawmakers and backlash from the business community that subsided over the weekend after the U.S and Mexico announced plans to address the problem.
Mr. Trump on Monday said that he could impose tariffs if the plans don’t work out.
The draft includes several points the Trump administration has made previously about a surge of Central American families seeking asylum at the U.S.’s southern border, which it says has brought the nation’s immigration infrastructure to a breaking point. But the collection of the data, together with the attribution of blame to Mexico, lays bare the heightened tension and the administration’s plan to use trade as a cudgel.
“United States immigration authorities now have nearly 70,000 aliens in custody—a record level that is not sustainable with current resources,” the document reads. “Aliens who exceed the United States Government’s detention and processing capacity are instead being released into our country’s interior, where they will remain for years—if they are ever removed at all.”
The draft says that some 675,000 people were apprehended seeking to cross into the U.S. without authorization this fiscal year through May; that figure tracks closely with previous pronouncements by Customs and Border Protection, as does the assertion that about three-quarters are from the Northern Triangle countries of Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.
The flood of adults and children fleeing poverty and violence from those countries has challenged the U.S.; many pass an initial screening that makes them eligible to claim asylum, and Congress is stymied on whether to make legal changes to the existing framework to either make it harder for them to lodge an existing claim or to enable a faster adjudication of their case.
The order also notes the arrival of a single group of more than 1,000 people on May 29, which it describes as the largest group ever apprehended at the southern border. The administration had described that group’s arrival as a particular provocation a day later when unveiling the threat of tariffs. The administration says large groups pose logistical and security problems when they arrive, especially at remote locations.
The draft also says that about 4,000 migrants have been found to be falsely posing as being part of family units when they aren’t related. The administration hasn’t previously offered evidence to support the assertion that fraud is widespread; officials have criticized the legal framework that effectively forces them to choose between allowing adults and children to enter the country together or separating them.
Mr. Trump had frequently railed against Mexico for failing to block the passage of Central Americans through its territory to the U.S. border. Until now, his administration had generally issued statistics on the border and focused on what it described as congressional inaction, without directly blaming Mexico.
The draft order echoes Mr. Trump’s tone on immigration, blaming Mexico for failing to do its part not only on migration but also in curbing the flow of drugs and human trafficking. It asserts that a “flood of aliens” has jeopardized resources for American citizens, citing the use of welfare programs by families that include people who aren’t citizens, and children who attend public schools. Most welfare programs are limited to citizens and longtime legal immigrants; a decades-old Supreme Court ruling requires that schools not make immigration status a condition of enrollment.
“Illegal immigration to the United States is costing American taxpayers nearly $116 billion per year,” the document states.
That figure has been linked to a September 2017 study published by the Federation for American Immigration Reform, which advocates for stricter policies. Others dispute that conclusion, pointing to studies showing that immigration is a net benefit over the longer term.
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