President Donald Trump on Monday officially signed a revamped version of his hotly-contested travel ban, reigniting concerns for Bay Area folks with ties to the impacted Muslim-majority countries.
The latest executive order, which will go into effect on March 16, will limit travel opportunities and prohibit visas from being handed out to people hailing from Iran, Syria, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen and Libya. Iraq, which was previously listed on the original executive order signed in January, was left off of the recent list. The decree will also temporarily suspend the U.S. refugee program.
In contrast to Trump's old order, the new mandate will not provide a blanket ban on Syrian refugees and will not deny travel to green card holders.
The goal of Trump's new order remains much the same as the first: allow the government to review the vetting process for visa and refugee applicants while preventing potential terrorists from landing on American soil.
"The American people can have high confidence that we are identifying ways to improve the vetting process and thus keep terrorists from entering the country," Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said a news conference.
Aside from sparking protests across the country, Trump's first travel ban issued in January compelled thousands of people to flock to San Francisco International Airport and voice outrage with the decree.
Chloe Messdaghi, who was among those to express frustration with Trump's first order, now faces another round of challenges.
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A family friend of Messdaghi recently said goodbye to his mom who traveled back to Iran. With the latest order soon to take into effect, Messdahi's family friend isn't sure when he'll be able to hug his mom again.
"I'm worried," Messdaghi said. "Not just for my family friends but for the communities, the refugees, the immigrants that are coming to visit their families. It's a terrible situation because it shouldn't be like this."
Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi on Monday also took the opportunity once again to vehemently oppose Trump's mandate.
"The Trump Administration's repackaging has done nothing to change the immoral, unconstitutional and dangerous goals of their Muslim and refugee ban," she wrote in a statement.
Read the full text of the order.
