Officials from the Biden administration unveiled their border and immigration enforcement strategy on Tuesday, as a pandemic-related border security exemption expires.
The Trump-era provision known as Title 42 is slated to expire on May 23, despite Republican claims that its repeal will herald the end of border security.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who was a key target of the attacks, released a 20-page letter on Tuesday outlining how the administration plans to avoid chaos as a result of the shift in border policy.
The letter lays out a strategy for enforcing immigration law without the extra legal authority that Title 42 gave officers to deport people caught at the border.
Officials from the Biden administration unveiled their border and immigration enforcement strategy on Tuesday, as a pandemic-related border security exemption expires.
The Trump-era provision known as Title 42 is slated to expire on May 23, despite Republican claims that its repeal will herald the end of border security.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who was a key target of the attacks, released a 20-page letter on Tuesday outlining how the administration plans to avoid chaos as a result of the shift in border policy.
The letter lays out a strategy for enforcing immigration law without the extra legal authority that Title 42 gave officers to deport people caught at the border.
This includes increasing the use of Expedited Removal, holding single adults where necessary, sending individuals whose conduct merits prosecution, and expediting asylum adjudications to allow us to process and remove those who do not qualify for protection under our laws more expeditiously.
When Mayorkas testifies on the administration’s border policy, specifically Title 42, he will be hammered by House Republicans later this week.
The Mayorkas memo’s tone suggests a concentration on severe enforcement, including the use of accelerated removals, while also boosting the capacity for processing asylum cases.
The Biden administration, like the Trump administration before it, has claimed that Title 42 is solely a public health policy, with its future enforcement contingent on the CDC’s decisions (CDC).
While the claim enraged immigration opponents, who claimed it amounted to the government sheltering behind the CDC to cut corners on border enforcement, it has also aided the administration in navigating a legal fight against Title 42’s repeal.
