TRUMP IS BUILDING INVISIBLE WAR

Thanks to a whirlwind of executive orders, policy adjustments, and subtle bureaucratic changes, US immigration policy is looking more and more like the xenophobic 1920s. Back then, the US barred Asians, as well as Italians, Greeks, and people from Eastern Europe. This time, however, US immigration policies are focused on reducing the number of people from Muslim-majority countries, Mexico, Africa, and Central America. While Donald Trump is still a long way off from building his much-hyped border wall, the overall effect of his administration’s policies has created what experts describe as a “virtual wall.” On a practical level, this barrier to entry makes the US’s higher-education system less diverse, and the country less welcoming to a global pool of talent and creativity. It also presents an existential crisis for America, critics say. “Ultimately what we’re talking about is the kind of country that we are,” David Price, a Democratic congressmen from North Carolina told Quartz. Yes, US immigration history is checkered, he said, and the country has had nativist administrations before. But the historical norm has always been to think of the US as a country of immigrants—until now. The invisible wall: Technicalities, delays and an avalanche of paperwork Earlier this year, Francis Cissna, the Trump-appointed director of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), changed the agency’s mission statement, taking the term “nation of immigrants” out. “The old mission statement did not accurately describe the full scope of what USCIS does,” he explained in a letter to employees, and later to Congress members. It “eroded the dignity and importance of the work of USCIS while confusing employees and the public about who USCIS serves.” In June, USCIS said officers must issue a “notice to appear”—the first step of deportation proceedings—to immigrants whose application for an immigration benefit is denied for any reason. What this means, in practice, is that many are being put on track for deportation before they have a chance to clear bureaucratic glitches or misunderstandings. Related: Donald Trump's most outrageous quotes (provided by photo services)