Two immigration changes are in today’s headlines: a new “public charge” rule reinstating pre-Trump policies and the Biden administration’s effort to end Trump’s Remain-in-Mexico program. The public charge rule changes is a federal regulation, which does not require Congressoinal action. The challenge to Remain-in-Mexico is now on a fast track heading to the Supreme Court.
[Roll Call] “The justices will decide if the government is legally required to preserve the so-called “Remain in Mexico” program, formally known as the Migrant Protection Protocols, or MPP. The Biden administration had ended the program last year, but a federal judge said it was improperly terminated and ordered it to be reinstated.
“While in effect under the Trump administration, roughly 70,000 migrants who crossed the U.S.-Mexico border were pushed back and forced to wait months, or longer, in dangerous border towns while their asylum cases continued.
“The high court also granted the federal government’s request to fast-track briefing and consider the case this term, paving the way for a potential ruling this summer. The high court plans to hear oral arguments in the case in April, according to the order.”
A new public charge rule proposed by the Biden administration reinstates and codifies pre-Trump standards.
[New York Times] “In U.S. immigration law, the idea of public charges has historically applied to those deemed likely to primarily depend on the federal government for survival, such as through public cash assistance or institutionalized long-term care. Mr. Trump’s rule expanded the definition, changing what had been common practice for 20 years, and was seen by many as a way to keep out poor immigrants.
“The Trump administration, however, expanded the list of benefits that could make a new immigrant ineligible for permanent residency, adding Medicaid, food stamps and subsidized housing, for example. Researchers have said the policy prompted many families to drop off the benefit rolls, even if they had children who were U.S. citizens and could use such programs with no effect on their immigration applications.”
And in other news
With current immigration processing backlogs and insufficient ways to provide some kind of immigration status to Afghan evacuees, the Biden administration is considering using TPS.
[The Hill] “The move comes as advocates are pushing the administration to offer broader protections and a pathway to citizenship to those who arrived during the chaotic evacuation.
“While more than 70,000 Afghans arrived in the U.S. during the evacuation, they remain in a tenuous immigration status, with some given as little as one year to formalize their paperwork to remain in America….
“The discussion over whether to issue such a designation comes as advocates are pushing for Congress to pass the Afghan Adjustment Act (AAA), which would allow those who entered the U.S. during the evacuation to apply for green cards and eventually citizenship.”
Thousands of migrants have been trapped in Tapachula, near the Mexico-Guatemala border, by a combination of Mexican and U.S. immigration policy failures. Their protests and demands for protection grow increasingly desperate.
[Vox] “The migrants reportedly used plastic needles and thread to sew their mouths as a means of pressuring COMAR, the Mexican refugee agency, to speed up processing of their applications. Migrants have also asked the Mexican government to let them leave the city and establish a humanitarian corridor so that they could get safe passage to the US border. Though the migrant community in Tapachula has staged vigils and hunger strikes before in protest, Tuesday’s actions represent an escalation and a sign that Mexico isn’t able to meet their humanitarian needs. …
“The city simply doesn’t have the infrastructure to support a sudden influx of people. For months, some 3,000 migrants were living at a campsite at Tapachula’s Olympic Stadium, where they had no access to clean water, food, health care, and other basic services, and shared only a few portable toilets.
“That camp was disbanded in December, but there still isn’t enough affordable housing and room in local shelters to support the migrant population and it’s not clear whether or when the Mexican government will build more shelters. Many are sleeping on the streets near INM’s local offices and don’t have work permits, meaning that they can’t secure stable employment that would allow them to support themselves while they wait. And they have reported being mistreated, arrested in violent and arbitrary manners, and robbed of their money and their phones by Mexican authorities.”
For PBS News Hour, distinguished MN journalist (and immigrant) Fred de Sam Lazaro interviews leading African immigrant voices: 2020 MN Teacher of the Year Qorsho Hassan, MN State Representative Esther Agbaje, journalist and historian Ibrahim Hirsi, and Children’s Minnesota Vice-President James Burroughs II.
[PBS News Hour] “Fred de Sam Lazaro: Hassan learned to embrace her dual identity as both Somali and Black, something she tries to instill in her students with similar backgrounds. Historically, she notes, there’s been tension between African immigrants and African Americans.
“Qorsho Hassan, Teacher: We have really created this network, per se, of knowing who we are, respecting our differences, but also really understanding that we are powerful together.”
The United States has a big shortage of doctors and an outdated, creaky visa system. Will a move to streamline visas for medical personnel finally have a chance of Congressional passage?
[Bloomberg Law] “The Covid-19 pandemic highlighted an ongoing challenge for the American healthcare system—it’s not training enough primary and specialty physicians to meet the needs of the population.
“However, thousands of immigrant doctors who train in U.S. residency programs each year face serious barriers to remain in the country and help relieve the shortage. That’s despite lobbying by hospital groups and immigrant advocates throughout the pandemic….
“Those advocates are also calling for passage of the Healthcare Worker Resilience Act (H.R. 2255, S. 1024), which would recapture unused immigrant visas and designate 25,000 for nurses and 15,000 for physicians. Despite bipartisan support, the bill has failed to move forward in the last two legislative sessions.”
Immigration news 