A group of 64 illegal migrants self-deported this week, taking a charter flight under the program Project Homecoming. This one-of-a-kind self-deportation plan incentivizes immigrants living illegally in the United States to leave the country voluntarily and receive a free flight plus a $1,000 stipend, with the added assurance that they may be able to return to the United States through legal routes.
“We are making it as easy as possible for illegal aliens to leave America,” President Donald Trump explained when he announced the order. “Any illegal alien can simply show up at an airport and receive a free flight out of our country. Illegals can book a free flight to any foreign country as long as it’s not here. You can go anywhere you want.”
Of the first group who chose to self-deport, 38 went to Honduras and were “warmly welcomed by their home government and family members,” according to a press release by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). For those over 18, the Honduran government’s Hermano, Hermana, Vuelve a Casa program provided an additional $100 bonus, with food vouchers and assistance to find employment.
The other 26 participants went to Colombia and were “welcomed back by their families and representatives of the Colombian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Migration Colombia,” the press release continued. Its government provided social services to the returnees.
The Self-Deport Program Saves ‘Billions’
“This deportation bonus will save American taxpayers billions and billions of dollars,” Trump said. DHS said it would be 70% cheaper for American taxpayers, explaining it currently costs the department more than $17,000 to arrest, detain, and deport an individual.
Another big change is that the Trump administration has revoked "the protected status of nearly one million people who have entered the U.S. using an app created by the Biden administration that allowed them to enter the country first and then schedule a court hearing on their legal status,” Just the News explained. The app mentioned is called CBP One, but the Trump administration has rebranded it as the CBP Home app. Now, instead of being a tool to get into the United States, it helps migrants self-deport.
"Today, DHS conducted its first Project Homecoming charter flight of 64 individuals who voluntarily chose to self-deport to their home countries of Honduras and Colombia,” said DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. “If you are here illegally, use the CBP Home App to take control of your departure and receive financial support to return home. If you don’t, you will be subjected to fines, arrest, deportation and will never be allowed to return. If you are in this country illegally, self-deport NOW and preserve your opportunity to potentially return the legal, right way.”
The president is utilizing a 1996 law – §1324d. Civil penalties for failure to depart – that allows the government to impose a daily fine on illegal immigrants who haven’t left the country when they have an order of removal to do so. He has made good on that promise. In Florida, a woman has reportedly incurred more than $1.82 million in penalties after she failed to comply with a deportation order issued 20 years ago for not appearing at an immigration court hearing. Her attorney, Michelle Sanchez, filed a motion last year to reopen the case, but it was denied in March this year. She argued that her client was eligible for residency because she’d been in the United States for a long time and had maintained a clean criminal record.
“ICE is terrorizing individuals without even having to go pick them up,” Sanchez told CBS News. “They are terrorizing them by sending these notices where they are fining individuals an exorbitant amount of money that a person sometimes doesn’t even make that amount in their lifetime.”
So far, 64 individuals have chosen to self-deport, and by all accounts, the mission has been successful. How many others will choose to do the same, especially after seeing that migrant in Florida receiving such a hefty fine?
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