Washington — US President Donald Trump will outline a plan on Thursday to harden border security and overhaul the legal immigration system to favour applicants who speak English, are well-educated and have job offers, say senior administration officials. Trump’s immigration proposal, the product largely of senior advisers Jared Kushner and Stephen Miller and economic aide Kevin Hassett, is an effort to rally Republicans on an issue that has often divided them. While its chances of approval by Congress seem distant, the plan will give Republicans an outline they can say they favour as Trump and legislators look towards the November 2020 presidential and congressional elections, where immigration will likely be a key issue. For decades, US immigration laws have given priority to family-based immigration, and about two-thirds of all people granted green cards each year have family ties to people in the US. Trump’s plan would keep legal immigration steady at 1.1-million people a year, b...
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