Washington: The Republican-controlled US Congress handed President Donald Trump an early win in his crackdown on illegal immigration, passing a bill to expand pretrial detention for foreign criminal suspects, media reported.
This will mark President Trump's first piece of legislation that will be signed into law during his second term. The Laken Riley Act mandates the detention of undocumented immigrants charged with theft-related crimes.
The bill passed the Senate with a 64-35 vote earlier this week, following which the House of Representatives approved it with a 263-256 vote. Receiving bipartisan support, apart from Republicans, 46 Democrats voted for it in the House and 12 voted to support it in the Senate.
The new law is in line with President Donald Trump's stance on immigration as he signed executive orders on his first day in office announcing mass deportations, sending US troops to the country's southern border to prevent illegal crossings.
Meanwhile, Trump has ordered 1,500 ground troops to the southern border, along with aircraft support, as part of a crackdown on "illegal aliens”. The troops will not be involved in "law enforcement", according to a senior military official. They will initially be used to build physical barriers and other "border missions”.
The President also paused the refugee resettlement program as part of a series of executive orders cracking down on immigration. Thousands of refugees who fled war and persecution, including more than 1,600 Afghans who assisted America's war effort, as well as relatives of active-duty US military personnel, are now stranded at various locations worldwide.
