What Will the Expulsion of All Illegal Migrants from the U.S. Cost

The newly elected president of the United States, Donald Trump, will face serious challenges as he attempts to implement large-scale expulsion programs for illegal migrants. This assessment was provided in an article published in The Hill on Wednesday.

According to the report, the Republican previously promised that the largest operation for the expulsion of illegal migrants in history would take place in the U.S. “However, as during Trump’s first presidential term, his agenda in the migration sector will encounter serious obstacles,” the publication emphasizes.

The article states that Trump is in favor of expelling “all those who are not legally in the country.” According to the newspaper, “this will require an astronomical increase in the budget.” The publication provides estimates, according to which “the expulsion of nearly 13 million people without necessary documents... will cost about $88 billion, which exceeds the entire current budget of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.”

The publication quotes comments from U.S. House of Representatives member Veronica Escobar (Democrat from Texas). In her view, large-scale expulsions of illegal migrants would “have quite devastating consequences for the country’s economy,” as it would reduce the existing workforce. The legislator added that Trump has, in her opinion, already somewhat softened his position on the issue of migrant expulsion due to the influence of lobbyists acting in favor of businesses, fearing a labor shortage.