Michigan immigration groups say they're prepping for Trump's next term, speak to "panic" in some corners
(CBS DETROIT) — President-elect Donald Trump promised major changes to the United States immigration system when he campaigned, and now local immigration groups tell CBS News Detroit they're doing everything they can to prepare.
"Our primary focus is getting in as many applications as possible for those programs that we that are likely to be terminated," said Julie Powers, the executive director of Immigration Law and Justice Michigan.
Trump spent much of his time on the campaign trail talking about immigration and his plans to begin mass deportation. It's promises like those that Powers says make her clients feel anxious.
"They are anxious. They are fearful in some cases," she said. "I think it runs the gamut from confused, bewildered, not sure what it means. All the way up to blind panic."
Michigan has more than 600,000 immigrants, according to the American Immigration Council.
Christine Suave with the Michigan Immigrant Rights Centers says their focus right now is to work through as many cases as possible.
"People who are eligible for a work permit should apply now," Suave said. "People who are eligible for immigration relief, like asylum or temporary protected status should apply or renew."
Suave says the swift removal of such a large group of people with mixed immigration status could have a devastating impact on Michigan. Industries like agriculture, construction, and even healthcare would take a hit. But the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) said in a statement that Trump must "send a clear signal that people caught entering the country illegally will be detained and deported, not released into the country."
They also write to end immigration programs that allow immigrants to live and work in the U.S. while they work on their citizenship.
"[Trump] must also direct ICE to conduct worksite enforcement investigations of companies that displace American workers and exploit low-wage illegal aliens," FAIR wrote.
Sauve warns that she foresees wider deportations.
"In order to achieve mass deportations, they'll be looking to remove any non-citizen, potentially," she said.
