President Donald Trump signs an executive order in the Oval Office
of the White House surrounded by small business leaders January 30,
2017 in Washington. (Andrew Harrer - Pool/Getty Images)
The State Department and Department of Homeland Security have
cleared the way for 872 refugees to enter the United States this
week, despite President Donald Trump’s executive order temporarily
banning refugees from any country from coming to America, internal
DHS documents obtained by Reuters reveal.
According to the documents, the State Department and DHS granted
the waivers because the refugees were “considered in transit” and
were already cleared to travel to the U.S. at the time Trump signed
his executive order last Friday.
In addition, the documents revealed that the refugees were
screened under procedures used by the Obama administration, which
the Trump administration has
said were not “adequate.” The Obama administration vetting
procedures for refugees typically took 18-24 months of screening,
and included security checks, medical checks, record checks, several
interviews and was
generally regarded as a tough process.
The waivers come amid a wave of protests over the weekend as the
effects of Trump’s executive order, which also blocks visitors from
seven Muslim-majority countries from traveling to the U.S. for 90
days, were immediately felt early Saturday when refugees
were being detained at U.S. ports of entry.
The internal DHS document said that between late
Friday and early Monday 348 visa holders were prevented
from boarding U.S.-bound flights. In addition, more than
200 people landed in the United States but were denied
entry, the document showed.
More than 735 people were pulled aside for
questioning by U.S. Customs and Border Protection
officers in airports, including 394 legal permanent U.S.
residents holding green cards, over the same time
period.
According to the DHS documents, people from the list of
seven Muslim-majority “countries of concern” — Iran, Iraq,
Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Yemen and Libya — could also be
granted a waiver and allowed into the U.S. on a case-by-case
basis.
Controversy surrounding the executive order heated up
again late Monday when acting Attorney General Sally Yates,
an appointee of former President Barack Obama who was
holding the position until Sen. Jeff Sessions (Ala.) could
be confirmed by the Senate,
instructed Justice Department lawyers to not defend
Trump’s executive order, saying that it violated the
Constitution.
Within hours,
Yates was fired by the Trump administration and replaced
with Dana Boente, who said he would defend Trump’s executive
action.