Amidst a crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border, the Biden administration has announced a new plan for immigration policy, tightening restrictions while also creating more options for migrants. Migration rates at the U.S.-Mexico border have skyrocketed in the past few years with around 206,239 encounters by the U.S. border patrol at the border in November 2022. With these difficulties at the border, the administration has decided to shift their previous, more lenient plan to stricter policy. Many immigration activists have described the plan as far too harsh while some lawmakers have criticized the loosening of a few legal pathways. When put into effect, the plan would have sizable effects on migrants and their process for entry into the country.
With the updated plan, the administration moves toward more rigid policy while still attempting to include some more compassionate approaches. Using a new parole program, the administration plans to allow 30,000 migrants from Venezuela, Nicaragua, Cuba, and Haiti to cross the border legally for work purposes if they have current ties with or family in the United States. Additionally, the policy proposal extends the use of Title 42, a public health measure that allows health authorities to swiftly prevent the spread of disease during emergency circumstances. In March 2020, the Trump administration invoked the Title to stop the spread of Covid-19 by quickly removing migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border. The new policy proposal from the Biden administration expands the usage of Title 42, contrasting with previous commitments to limit these stricter actions.
While some have described the new policy as a worthy compromise for a complex issue, many lawmakers have opposed the plan both morally and structurally. Democratic Senator Bob Menendez described how the administration’s policy on asylum, “will exclude migrants fleeing violence and persecution who do not have the ability or economic means to qualify.” In the plan, the Biden administration describes how migrants from Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Haiti who cross the U.S.-Mexico border without approval through the formal entry points will be denied the ability to apply for asylum which some observers believe places migrants in dangerous conditions. Furthermore, Republican lawmakers have criticized the plan as being too loose in its approach, particularly regarding the expansive parole program, allowing conditions for further disorganization and instability amidst the already chaotic border situation.
Immigration activists have swiftly denounced the shift in policy, decrying its lack of empathy for migrants. Melissa Crow, an immigration lawyer, described the migrants at the border as, “often fleeing imminent threats to their lives…they may not have cell phones, reliable internet access.” Crow’s description reflects the views of immigration organizers that the Biden administration, in forcing migrants to remain in their countries or expelling them in the case of illegal migration, ignores the difficult situations of some migrants.
In expanding Title 42, the administration’s current plan would expel more migrants from Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Haiti each month than it did all of last year, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection. This drastic change reflects Biden’s shift towards more medial immigration policy that attempts to enforce security while maintaining some humanitarian standards. The parole program, which allows up to 30,000 migrants to enter legally each month, should result in a lower number of illegal border crossings with the opening up of a new legal pathway. Beginning in October, an early version of the plan in Venezuela began which lowered illegal crossings by 76 percent, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Evidently, immigration has become a fraught and complex issue that the Biden administration has struggled to control over the past two years. This recent shift in policy demonstrates a desire to quell backlash and promote greater stability while also potentially preparing for a reelection campaign in 2024. In the last year, immigration policies from the Biden administration have significantly shifted migration statistics, indicating the potential for considerable change with this new plan. Ultimately, the plan will see its outcomes in migrant conditions and border security which will surely be tested in major ways over the next couple of months.
Sources:
https://www.npr.org/2023/01/05/1146976334/biden-border-security-immigration
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-64046542
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/05/biden-border-security-immigration/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/2023/01/07/biden-immigration-border/
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/05/us/politics/biden-border-crossings.html
Photos:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/biden-considers-visit-to-u-s-mexico-border-11672857497
https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/31/politics/border-title-42-whats-next-cec/index.html
https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/15/politics/dhs-covid-19-protocols-watchdog/index.html