Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The concern specifically around the United States is not just the domestic policies pursued by this Administration but the global reach of the United States, which is unrivalled by the Cubans and the Venezuelans. The Taoiseach would accept that.

It is very difficult to know where to start with the Trump Administration. On the one hand, people accept the reality that this man was democratically returned to office. That is a fact. However, there is a huge concern around where this country and its Administration positions itself in its interactions with that Administration, and there is no appetite whatsoever simply to go along with what amounts to a fairly warped view of the world with strong elements of evil laced through.

Will the Taoiseach comment specifically on the issue of what we in this country call the undocumented, who are in fact the Irish illegals Stateside? The recent arrest of a Donegal man who has been living in the United States for 20 years has caused huge anxiety for all the Irish community. According to the immigration and customs enforcement branch of the Department of Homeland Security, there was a 37% increase in arrests on immigration charges in the first three months of the Trump Presidency. Will the Taoiseach tell the Dáil if the Government has recorded any increase in arrests of undocumented Irish citizens in the United States? Is he aware of any other citizens currently being held by the immigration service for deportation, and can he report on the extent of his lobbying of the Administration in a bid to find a resolution to this situation?

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