Joe Biden To Sign Executive Orders Addressing Immigration, Including Reunification For Migrant Families
On Tuesday, President Joe Biden will sign three executive orders focused on the issue of immigration. These include reuniting families that were separated after crossing the U.S. border, addressing shortcomings in the current asylum process and conducting a review on changes made to the legal immigration system during the Trump administration, as reported by CNN. The orders seek to rectify the previous president’s hardline stance on immigration but will not provide an overnight solution. Biden is expected to continue signing executive orders on the issue as reviews are completed and his immigration agenda develops.
The most notable of the executive actions is the creation of a task force to begin the process of reunification for children in the United States and their parents who have been deported without them. Details of how this will be done have not yet been revealed, and a lack of records is likely to prevent any quick fixes. The task force will work alongside representatives of families affected, along with other activists to develop recommendations for how to best resolve the controversial practice.
Another order will take a look at the conditions that created an increase of migrants seeking asylum in the United States over recent years. It will also seek an alternative to the Migrant Protection Protocols, informally referred to as “Remain in Mexico.” The Migrant Protection Protocols — which requires non-Mexican migrants to stay in Mexico until their immigration court date in the United States — were suspended by Biden on his first day in office, and he promised to address the underlying conditions in countries in Central America that lead to migration. The administration will restore the asylum system and provide a solution for those currently stuck at the border of the United States and Mexico, although details of the solution have not yet been revealed.
The final executive order will call on agencies to conduct a complete review of policies and regulations set up in recent years to identify any barriers to legal immigration. One that will be removed is Trump’s “public charge” rule that prevented immigrants from obtaining permanent resident status if they were likely to require public benefits.
The Biden administration has faced pressure from immigration activists and organizations with concerns that reforms will be cast aside as the health and economic crises created by the coronavirus pandemic draw the president’s primary focus. Biden also submitted a far-reaching immigration bill to Congress on the day he entered the White House, although the timeline of its passing is unclear.
