Immigrants Rights Groups Blast Trump Administration

WASHINGTON (AP) – Immigrant rights groups are blasting the Trump administration’s new rules that could deny green cards to immigrants if they use forms of public assistance like food stamps or Medicaid.  The Los Angeles-based National Immigration Law Center immediately vowed to file a lawsuit challenging the changes that take effect in October. In a Monday statement, the group  calls the new rules an attempt to redefine the legal immigration system “in order to disenfranchise communities of color and favor the wealthy.”  Advocates say the efforts will scare immigrants into not asking for help and worry the rules will be applied too broadly.  The Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights in Los Angeles says the biggest toll will be on vulnerable populations with  limited means. The group’s executive director, Angelica Salas, calls the Trump administration’s approach “cruel” and “unnecessary” with the clear objective of keeping “all “all immigrants out.”