WASHINGTON, D.C. – Last night, President Trump addressed both chambers of Congress in a joint address, where his administration’s policy failures were on full display as he asked Congress – and taxpayers – to foot the bill. The National Partnership for New Americans, a multiethnic, multiracial coalition of 86 of the nation’s largest immigrant and refugee rights organizations with a reach across over 42 states, has witnessed the dangerous effect of these chaotic policies firsthand.

During his record-long speech that was marred by protests from Democratic members of Congress, President Trump doubled down on his policy agenda of mass deportation and terror-–a policy that is well on its way to devastating our economy. Economic models indicate that a welcoming, accessible pathway to citizenship would increase wages for all U.S. workers and create hundreds of thousands of new jobs. By spreading fear and division, these policies intend to strip legal protections from thousands, detain and deport long-standing, hardworking community members, rip families apart, and disrupt those who are socially and economically invested in the United States.

The president also touched on his recent “English only” Executive Order, yet another sharp overreach of executive power that will bar millions of people from accessing essential services such as education, healthcare, work, and their ability to contribute positively to the United States. 

In his address, it is clear that President Trump’s policy agenda demands billions of dollars from American taxpayers, many of whom are hardworking immigrants who contribute billions to social security and Medicaid—despite not being eligible for these benefits themselves. Trump called on Congress to “send me the funding.”

Said Nicole Melaku, NPNA executive director, “Our country’s budget is a moral document, one that states our priorities as a nation and what we are willing to put money behind. As the administration asks to fund policies that do nothing to address the cost of living while stripping civil rights, it is clear that Congress is morally bankrupt. 

This administration’s policies demand a 350 billion dollar blank check to terrorize immigrant communities with policies that attack human rights such as asylum and birthright citizenship, mandate all immigrants register with the government with fingerprints and addresses, and rip families apart through detention and deportation without access to legal guidance. This administration’s policies are a threat to American democracy, and Congress needs a voice of reason – urgently – as they continue to debate how they will spend our tax dollars. We call on members of Congress to reconsider what is worthy of funding, respect their position as a check on executive power, and hear these policies for what they are: a smokescreen to disguise this administration’s inaction on what matters most and a betrayal of American values.”

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The National Partnership for New Americans (NPNA) is a multi-ethnic, multiracial coalition of 83 of the nation’s largest immigrant and refugee rights organizations with reach across over 42 states. Together with our members, we advance immigrant and refugee equity and inclusion, build and expand immigration legal services and integration programming capacity, and drive campaigns that strengthen democracy through increased civic participation. See our website for more information at partnershipfornewamericans.org.