Ilhan Omar slams Trump's 'devastating' immigration plan, renews call to abolish ICE

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President Trump proposes dramatic shift in legal immigration

Trump calls for a dramatic shift from a family-based system to one that rewards education and skills; chief White House correspondent John Roberts reports.

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn, blasted President Trump's newly-unveiled immigration plan Thursday and renewed her call to abolish the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency.

“Today the president has unveiled an immigration plan that makes no mention of DACA, a program Trump unilaterally ended in late 2017, that has been hanging by a thread thanks to court injunctions,” Omar began in a speech to liberal activists. “A plan that fails to make sure people with temporary protection status and deferred enforced departure recipients don’t have a path to a permanent status or citizenship. A plan that seeks to limit asylum seekers fleeing violence.”

Omar, a Somali refugee, insisted that Trump's plan would have a "devastating effect on millions of people around the world" like her and believed that the US, which she referred to as "beacon of hope for the world," should provide immigrants a "simple and accessible path to become documented" and not "dehumanize" them or "call them 'animals.'"

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"So what are we asking for? What we are asking for is very simple. We need to make sure that we cut, and not put increases on spending on detention facilities. We need to stop using DHS as a slush fund," Omar continued. "We need to abolish ICE and end all inhumane deportation and detention programs. We need to fight back against the criminalization of immigrants and those crossing the border. We need to create a fair and accessible path to legal status and citizenship for all undocumented people in the United States.”

In a Rose Garden speech, President Trump detailed what he hoped would be included in a massive immigration reform package, including using a merit-based system for new migrants and ending the visa lottery.