Bernd Debusmann Jr.,BBC News, Washington
beautiful imagesPresident Joe Biden has issued a sweeping executive order aimed at curbing record numbers of migrants arriving at the US-Mexico border, leaving him politically vulnerable in an election year.
Under the order, which takes effect at midnight, officials can quickly remove migrants who entered the US illegally without processing their asylum claims.
That will happen when the daily threshold is reached and the border is “overburdened,” the White House said in a statement.
Rival Republicans say Biden has not gone far enough, while some of the president’s Democratic allies – and the United Nations – have expressed concern.
A spokesman for the United Nations refugee agency said those who fear persecution should be given access to safe territory.
Mr. Biden spoke about the order at an event Tuesday with several border town mayors. He said “this action will help us gain control of our borders”.
The president criticized Republicans for failing to pass bipartisan immigration reform in Congress earlier this year — and asked progressive critics of the new executive action to be “patient.”
“We’re getting lean right now,” he said. “Doing nothing is not an option.”
The order – also aimed at speeding up cases and easing pressure on overburdened US immigration courts – has drawn criticism from activists.
“Unfortunately, politics is pushing the immigration conversation in an increasingly restrictive direction,” said Jennie Murray, president and CEO of the National Immigration Forum.
More than 6.4 million migrants have been prevented from entering the US illegally under Joe Biden’s administration.
The number of arrivals has dropped sharply this year, although experts believe that trend is unlikely to continue.
Mexican media described the move as one of Mr. Biden’s toughest policies, although President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has sought to downplay the issue, saying economic and cultural exchanges prompted the closure. border gate is “impossible”.
Authorities in Tijuana asked what would happen to asylum seekers who were denied entry into the United States.
A local official warned that shelters in Mexico City could quickly become overcrowded. “We started seeing people on the streets, sleeping in tents.”
About a dozen Democratic supporters and lawmakers held a separate news conference outside the US Capitol on Tuesday, criticizing Biden’s decision.
Pramila Jayapal, president of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said she was “extremely disappointed” by the executive action and called it a “step in the wrong direction.”
Others in Mr Biden’s party disagree – including Ruben Gallego, an Arizona congressman, who said there was still “more work to be done”.
The election campaign of Donald Trump, Mr. Biden’s Republican opponent, previously argued that this order “is for amnesty, not border security.”
In a statement Tuesday following the president’s announcement, the White House said that the new order “will take effect when the high level of clashes at the southern border exceeds our ability to provide timely consequences.” times, as is the case today.”
Among the actions announced Tuesday was the use of a 1952 law that allows limited access to the U.S. asylum system.
Act 212(f) allows the US president to “suspend the entry” of foreigners if their arrival “harms the interests” of the country.
Similar regulations have been used by the Trump administration to ban immigration and travel from several predominantly Muslim countries and bar migrants from seeking asylum if they are caught crossing the border into the US illegally, causing accused of racism.
“While it is clear that the United States needs to better address challenges at the border, the use of 212(f) authority is troubling,” Ms. Murray said.
Ms. Jayapal told the BBC that she was worried that Mr. Biden’s actions could spark legal battles.
“When Donald Trump did this, the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) filed a lawsuit and it was declared unconstitutional,” she said. “This is another executive order. So things could be different.”
However, she added, “we risk seriously violating our own laws”.
The Biden administration plans to defend the new policies in court against any challenges it may face from activists or Republican-led states.
They said the restrictions will take effect when the seven-day average of daily traffic reaches 2,500.
“These actions will take effect when the southern border is overwhelmed, and they will make it easier for immigration officers to quickly deport individuals who do not have a legal basis to do so,” the White House said. stay”.
The border will only reopen to asylum seekers when the average number holds at 1,500 over a seven-day period – and will then reopen to migrants two weeks later.
Other measures aim to quickly resolve immigration cases in court and expedite the deportation of people found to have no legal basis to remain in the US.
Asylum processing at ports of entry will continue as ordered.
About 1,500 asylum seekers go through this process at official ports of entry each day, mostly after making appointments using a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) app called CBP One.
Guerline Jozef, executive director of the Haitian Bridge Alliance — which works with Haitian migrants at the border — called the announcement “a direct attack on the basic human right to seek asylum.” .
“This Trump-era policy will leave thousands of vulnerable individuals, including families, children and those fleeing violence and repression, without the protection and refuge they deserve,” Ms. Jozef said. need”.
Speaking to reporters Tuesday, senior administration officials rejected comparisons to Trump-era policies, saying the new rules would only apply during periods of increased arrivals.
They said they would exempt unaccompanied children and those who have been trafficked.
Meanwhile, Republicans have criticized Biden’s border plan as an election-year ruse — and argued for tougher action.
They argue that US laws already exist to prevent illegal immigration but have not been properly enforced by the Democratic president.
Officials and the White House have sought to blame Republicans for blocking a bipartisan border security deal that failed earlier this year.
“Republicans in Congress have chosen to put partisan politics above our national security,” the White House said.
Statistics recently released by CBP show that approximately 179,000 migrant “encounters” were recorded in April.
By comparison, in December the number jumped to 302,000 – a historic high.
Officials in the US and Mexico say increased enforcement by Mexican authorities is the main reason.
The drop in the number of migrants crossing the US border comes at a politically fraught time for President Biden.
Polls show immigration is the top election concern for many voters in November’s presidential election.
A Gallup poll in late April found that 27% of Americans consider immigration the most important issue facing the country, ahead of the economy and inflation.
A separate poll conducted by the Associated Press and NORC Center for Public Affairs Research in March indicated that two-thirds of Americans currently disapprove of Mr. Biden’s handling of the border issue, including about 40% of Democratic voters.
