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WASHINGTON, April 28 (AP) — With COVID-19 immigration restrictions set to expire, the Biden administration announced Thursday measures aimed at stopping migrants from crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally, hitting many who did come, And by creating new avenues to provide alternatives to dangerous journeys.
Those efforts include opening processing centers outside the United States for people fleeing violence and poverty to apply to fly legally and settle in the United States, Spain or Canada. The first machining centers will be opened in Guatemala and Colombia, with others expected to follow.
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The administration also plans to quickly screen asylum-seekers at the border itself, swiftly deport those deemed ineligible, and impose penalties on those who illegally cross into the U.S. or pass through other countries on their way to the U.S. border.
But it’s unclear whether the measures will go a long way toward slowing the wave of migrants fleeing countries in political and economic conflict. Further adding to the pressure, public health rules enacted during the pandemic that allowed for the swift deportation of many immigrants are coming to an end, and are set to expire on May 11.
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“This is a hemispheric challenge that requires a hemispheric solution,” Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said at a news conference, laying out how the United States is working with other countries in the region.
Mayorkas also warned that migrants and people smugglers should not interpret the looming deadline to mean everyone should come: “Let me be clear, our borders are not open and will not be after May 11.”
Immigration issues have plagued Biden throughout his presidency, with top Republican leaders assailing him for being weak on border security. At the same time, immigration advocates argue that the president is abandoning humanitarian efforts and adopting stricter measures to prevent immigrants from entering the country illegally.
Topics don’t go away. In announcing his 2024 re-election bid, Biden is trying to strike a balance that may be difficult to achieve, especially if migrant crowds end up at border facilities after May 11.
The administration has also repeatedly pointed to Congress for failing to reach an agreement on comprehensive immigration reform.
The effort announced Thursday builds on the administration’s growing use of a carrot-and-stick approach to immigration, offering incentives such as humanitarian parole visas to hundreds of thousands of people and crippling consequences for many who come to the border . So far these include:
– Processing centers: The government will open immigration centers in a number of countries, starting with Guatemala and Colombia, run by the International Organization for Migration and the UN agency tasked with helping refugees.
There, potential immigrants can get information about the various ways they can immigrate to the United States, such as applying for refugee status or worker programs. Both Canada and Spain have indicated they receive referrals from these centres, the government said, without giving specific numbers.
The U.S. also said it would double the number of refugees it accepts from Central and South America. No specific figures were given there either, but in fiscal year 2023, the US has pledged to accept 15,000 refugees from Latin America and the Caribbean.
– Tougher, faster penalties: The government says it will process asylum seekers who come to the southern border more quickly — in days rather than weeks — with the aim of speeding the return of those who fail initial screening.
Those deported will be barred from entering the United States for five years. The government says its goal is to dramatically increase flights to repatriate migrants from the United States. Officials also said a previously announced rule would limit asylum to people who pass through another country or enter the United States illegally without first seeking protection in that country. It will also go into effect before the May 11 deadline.
– No Family Detention: The government has not said they will detain families who cross the border illegally. The move would draw widespread condemnation from immigration advocates and Biden allies. But they said they would monitor the family through curfews and GPS surveillance, stressing that if the family is found to be ineligible to remain in the United States, they will be deported.
— Family reunification: DHS is creating a new family reunification parole process for people from El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Colombia. The agency is “modernizing” existing family reunification procedures for Cuban and Haitians.
— Cracking down on smugglers: Mayorkas emphasized tougher crackdowns on smuggling networks that facilitate travel from the region to the U.S. border.
Andrew Selee, head of the Migration Policy Institute, said the announced plan was “the clearest strategy we’ve seen” on how to deal with immigration from the government. But he cautioned that it would still take a lot of time and commitment for the program to succeed.
“I think this is the closest we’ve seen to a comprehensive plan,” Selee said. He said the government was betting a lot on processing centers and suggested they could provide people with information about immigration options in ways that, for example, the U.S. embassy could not.
But Selee says they must be closely linked with local networks in each country so potential migrants know about them, so local organizations who know those most eager to flee can refer them to the centres.
Thursday’s announcement was criticized by many immigration advocates, including members of the president’s political party, who were uneasy with Biden’s growing efforts to make it harder to get asylum at the border.
Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., said he was “disappointed” with the plan, especially after urging the White House in recent weeks to adopt a different immigration strategy, including expanding Temporary Protected Status to people from several Central American countries. He also expressed doubts about how parts of the plan would be implemented.
“The question is, how are we going to set up these processing centers? What entities are there to ensure that a person is processed in an appropriate manner? What are we doing with third countries to be able to receive individuals and keep them safe?” Menendez said.
Many groups working to help refugees and other immigrants said they welcomed aspects of the president’s plan, such as allowing more refugees from South and Central America and accelerating family reunification efforts. But they say it should not be at the expense of people applying for asylum at the border.
In a statement, IRP said it was concerned by the lack of details about the plan, how it would be implemented and where the money would come from.
The group also said the U.S. refugee resettlement program was still struggling to recover after cuts during the Trump administration.
“We have more questions than answers,” said Lacy Broemel, a policy analyst for the program.
Others, including right-leaning groups already strongly critical of Biden, blasted the plan, saying that processing immigrants faster simply means they get into the country faster. The Federation for American Immigration Reform said the moves amounted to “a massive illegal program designed to accommodate an unlimited number of immigrants.” (Associated Press)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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