As the Donald Trump administration intensifies its crackdown on foreigners allegedly violating immigration laws, Tesla CEO Elon Musk on Monday endorsed a new mobile application designed for self-deportation.
Musk’s endorsement came a day after Ranjani Srinivasan, an Indian student at Columbia University, self-deported from the US using the CBP Home App, becoming one of the first individuals in the country to utilise the feature.
Sharing a post by US Customs and Border Protection about the app, Musk, who is the chief of the US’s governance reform agency DOGE, wrote, “New app to assist in self-deportation!”
Initially developed to facilitate asylum appointments, the CBP Home App was repurposed by the Trump administration to enable individuals to “self-deport” lawfully, avoiding potential arrest and detention.
“The CBP Home app gives aliens the option to leave now and self-deport, so they may still have the opportunity to return legally in the future and live the American dream. If they don’t, we will find them, we will deport them, and they will never return,” the Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said while launching the app on March 10.
The US administration saw it as an easy and cost-effective way to advance President Trump’s efforts to deport millions of undocumented immigrants. It is also part of the White House’s broader initiative to drastically reshape the US immigration system.
CBP Home replaces CBP One, an app launched under President Joe Biden that allowed prospective migrants to schedule appointments at ports of entry. However, moments after Trump took office, CBP One ceased processing asylum applications, and tens of thousands of border appointments were cancelled.
Ranjani Srinivasan, a Columbia PhD candidate in urban planning, had arrived in the US on a student visa. On March 5, her visa was revoked after the US government accused her of supporting the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
Fearing arrest, Srinivasan quickly decided to use CBP Home to self-deport to Canada.
Her departure followed the arrest of another Columbia University student, Mahmoud Khalil — a US permanent resident with a green card — over his involvement in pro-Palestinian protests. He is set to be deported.
Immigration officials have also arrested Leqaa Kordia, a Palestinian from the West Bank, for participating in pro-Palestinian demonstrations.
The Trump administration has indicated that more deportations could follow, as US agencies plan to investigate Columbia University protests for potential terrorism violations.
Tune In
About The Author
