Expect Trump's crackdown on immigration to be disruptive

He is far better placed to act swiftly and harshly this time around

- PATRICIA LOPEZ

It's clear that US President-elect Donald Trump believes he has a mandate to enact the largest deportation in US history. What happens next could forever alter what it means to be an American.

Immigration under President Joe Biden surged to levels unmatched in more than a century—an estimated net increase of 8 million migrants during his four years in office, with a majority crossing illegally, according to a Goldman Sachs report.

Biden was determined to reverse the harsh Trump 1.0 policies that limited both kinds of immigration. But Biden never conveyed it. There was no 'Biden doctrine' to help people understand why he believed more immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers could prove a net benefit. Finally, after Trump killed a bipartisan immigration reform bill, Biden re-imposed tighter limits on the southern border, but it was too late to save the election for Democrats.

Now the US finds itself with the highest foreign-born population in its history—over 15—and a border that's more porous than secure. And the electorate has proven susceptible to Trump's rhetoric. As Trump prepares to deliver on his top priority, expect the actions that follow to be swift and ugly. Watch out for five things: