New policy suspends asylum claims for most migrants who entered the US illegally – Houston Public Media

President Joe Biden issued an executive order on Tuesday temporarily suspending the processing of most asylum applications at the southern U.S. border if the number of unauthorized border crossings exceeds an average of 2,500 within a seven-day period.

Senior government officials told reporters that the measures would take effect immediately.

Once the measure comes into force, migrants who cross the border without authorization would not be eligible for asylum unless there are exceptional circumstances. Senior government officials said they would deport such people “within days, if not hours.”

Additionally, migrants who cross the southern border illegally and seek expedited removal would be subject to a credible fear test if they fear returning to their country or intend to seek asylum. However, the threshold for credible fear would be raised.

The restrictions will remain in place until the seven-day average of illegal border crossings falls below 1,500. Once the number reaches 2,500, the measures will come into force again.

Biden, who is seeking re-election and has come under criticism for the high number of migrants entering the United States, is relying on Section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act to implement these restrictions.

It is the same law that former President Donald Trump – who is challenging Biden in this year’s election – used in 2017 to ban immigration from several Muslim-majority countries and in 2018 to prohibit migrants from entering between crossings along the southern border. As was the case during the Trump administration, Biden’s executive order is expected to be challenged by immigrant rights groups.

Amy Fischer, refugee and migrant rights director at Amnesty International USA, said in a statement that Biden’s actions “set a dangerous international precedent.”

“It is deeply disappointing to see President Biden so intent on dismantling human rights for asylum seekers and implementing measures that are clearly illegal under international and refugee law,” Fischer said.

Senior administration officials told reporters that the United States would continue to send citizens of Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela back to Mexico.

These rules also apply to migrants from countries outside the Western Hemisphere, although government officials said this was a challenge.

“We are confident that the steps we are taking today are consistent with our obligations under international law,” an official said.

Application of the Immigration and Nationality Act

Section 212(f) is a provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 that empowers the President to “suspend” or restrict the entry of immigrants into the country when necessary.

Bill Hing, a professor of law and migration studies at the University of San Francisco, said there are many laws that prevent certain immigrants from entering the country, such as members of a terrorist organization.

However, section 212(f) is more comprehensive.

“It’s much broader,” Hing said. “It simply says that the president has the power to issue a proclamation restricting the entry of anyone who, in the president’s opinion, is detrimental to the interests of the United States.”

Hing described the wording of the law as “ambiguous.”

This section has been used in the past by Democratic and Republican presidents to curb illegal migration.

In 1981, President Ronald Reagan invoked this law to restrict Haitians from entering the United States. He also used it to ban Cubans, Nicaraguans (members of the Sandinista National Liberation Front), and Panamanian officials under the dictatorship of Manuel Antonio Noriega.

Since then, Section 212(f) has been used to deny entry to certain citizens of several countries, including China, Iran, Venezuela, Myanmar, Nigeria, Sudan and Tanzania.

Most notoriously, however, President Donald Trump referred to this ban in January 2017, calling it the “Muslim ban.” Trump’s executive order indefinitely ended the resettlement of Syrian refugees and banned citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the country for 90 days. President Biden repealed this executive order in 2021.

Biden’s decision

President Biden’s actions on Tuesday come at a time when the number of unauthorized border crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border has steadily declined in recent months, contrary to migration patterns.

In December, there were nearly 250,000 encounters with migrants between entry points on the southern border – a record high.

However, these numbers have dropped sharply. In April, U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported nearly 129,000 encounters.

Immigration policy analysts have said these numbers are due to Mexico’s enforcement of immigration laws on its southern border with Guatemala and its northern border with the United States.

Rolando Salinas, the mayor of Eagle Pass, Texas, questioned Biden’s timing for the announcement.

Eagle Pass was the epicenter of the dispute between Texas Governor Greg Abbott and the Biden administration over its handling of immigration.

“I just wish this had happened back in December when our city was being hit by 2,000 to 3,000 people a day,” Salinas told NPR in a text message. “We will not forget those days.”

In recent months, Biden has announced a tight-knit policy at the border, including proposing a new rule to speed up the deportation of some migrants who are not eligible for asylum.

Biden’s decision is likely to be challenged in court by immigrant rights groups.

When he invoked Section 212(f) in 2021 as part of his public health efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic, that’s exactly what happened. With his order, Biden banned the entry of non-U.S. citizens who had been in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Brazil, and South Africa within 14 days of attempting to enter the United States.

This also applied to people who had been in the Schengen area, which consists of 29 European countries.

Lily Axelrod, an immigration attorney in Memphis, Tennessee, said the move was “quite disruptive to work and family.”

Maribel Hernandez Rivera, border and immigration policy and government affairs director at the ACLU, said Biden’s latest executive order will likely have a negative impact on legal immigration pathways to the United States.

“Whenever you do something that prevents people from applying for asylum, you are actually hindering the legal avenues available to people,” Hernandez Rivera said.

She said Biden’s actions represented a “missed opportunity” to take action to better control illegal border crossings at the southern border.

“This is just a repetition of what President Trump did, this is just a repetition of cruel policies,” Hernandez Rivera said.

Hernandez Rivera added that Biden should focus on his campaign promise to restore the country’s asylum system.