For people seeking work or an escape to a better life in the United States, it's going to cost about two times the current amount, following a move by the Trump administration to hike fees on various immigration applications.
Michelle Mendez, director of defending vulnerable programs at the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC), calls the move an assault on immigration.
"This rule, these fees that have increased will make it extremely difficult for individuals to become legal immigrants, specifically to become naturalized immigrants, to become citizens," Mendez told Cheddar.
The new fees, which are set to be increased in October, will also gravely impact the world's most at-risk populations seeking asylum in the U.S., Mendez added.
"$50 may seem to be a small fee for many of us. We have to understand that asylum seekers leave their countries, they flee their countries with practically nothing," she said.
While news of the increased fees may be looked on as damning, Mendez said the move is on par with the Trump administration's previous moves to eliminate "access to the legal immigration process."
"During the [presidential] campaign, the rhetoric was very much focused on illegal immigration. We knew that that actually meant they were going to attack illegal and legal immigration," she said.
For Mendez, the idea of increasing fees and making the process even more difficult for people who want to become American is a jab at the foundation upon which the country was built.
"When we limit the opportunity for people to be engaged in the process by being citizens, that really undermines our democracy. That really undermines our democratic process," she stated.
Prominent business leaders have announced that they will not attend a high-profile conference in Saudi Arabia due to the current controversy surrounding the disappearance of a Washington Post journalist. Dan Primack, business editor at Axios, said while it's partly a PR move, if companies decide to pull out of business deals with Saudi Arabia it could be a huge detriment to the kingdom's economy.
Sarah Leah Whitson of Human Rights Watch said that the alleged murder of Jamal Khashoggi is finally opening up the eyes of the world to the "grotesque" human rights abuses from the Saudi kingdom.
President Trump raised the possibility on Monday that missing and presumed-dead journalist Jamal Khashoggi may have been murdered by "rogue killers" from Saudi Arabia, a theory he floated to reporters after a phone call with Saudi King Salman.
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Larry Kudlow, director of the National Economic Council, isn't worried about the possible bankruptcy that former retail giant Sears is facing. He says the U.S. has a "dynamic economy," and that's part of the process.
The alleged murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi has major corporations rethinking their involvement in Saudi Arabia, even as President Trump avoids taking a stance. Jeanne Whalen, a reporter for the Washington Post, said this could be destructive to the Saudis' effort to diversify their economy as they move away from oil.
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Stocks rebounded at the market open Friday after a massive two-day sell-off. The Dow Industrials shot up by 400 points.
Stocks continued their slide in volatile trading Thursday. Some tech stocks rebounded, albeit slightly, while President Trump continued his attacks on the Fed.
After President Trump spoke out about the Fed on Wednesday, Rep. Tom Reed (R-NY) told Cheddar that he believes the U.S. is headed towards a debt crisis, if spending isn't brought under control soon.
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