NATIONAL NEWS – Homeland Security lays out its plans for deporting immigrants

Laila Kirkpatrick, Staff Writer

The Trump administration has begun working alongside the Department of Homeland Security to develop plans to build immigration detention facilities. These facilities are going to be built on U.S. military bases around the country. The Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Defense are reportedly collaborating on the detaining of immigrants without legal status according to a DHS memo. This step could significantly expand the military’s role in immigration enforcement. The memo sent earlier this month was from Julia Blackwell the acting executive secretary at DHS lays out the plan to use Fort Bliss near El Paso Texas in which they will “stage detainees for removal from the United States.” 

The request is still in the planning stages, however, if the plan is activated it could expand the dentition capacity in a way that could allow Trump to push for more mass deportations. Fort Bliss could detain up to 1,000 immigrants during a 60-day evaluation period. This memo could eventually hold as many as 10,000 immigrants and could eventually serve as a “central hub for deportation operations,” the memo said. Fort Bliss could also serve as a model for 10 other holding facilities on military bases all over the country.