In what is the biggest news for United States immigration since 2016, it is certain that Joe Biden will be the next president of the United States.
President-Elect Biden has promised to pass key legislation in the first 100 days of his term that will undo many of the Trump administration’s destructive immigration policies and set the country on a more immigration-friendly course:
- Immediately reverse the Trump Administration’s policies that separate parents from their children at the border.
- End Trump’s detrimental asylum policies and the mismanagement of the asylum system.
- Send humanitarian resources to the border and foster public-private initiatives.
- End prolonged detention and reinvest in a case management program.
- Reverse Trump’s public charge rule.
- End the National Emergency that uses federal dollars from the Department of Defense to build a wall.
- Protect Dreamers and their families.
- Rescind the travel and refugee bans.
- Order a review of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for vulnerable populations who cannot find safety in their countries ripped apart by violence or disaster.
- Restore sensible enforcement priorities.
- Ensure that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel abide by professional standards and are held accountable for inhumane treatment.
- Protect and expand opportunities for people who risked their lives in military service.
- Restore and defend the naturalization process for green card holders.
- Prioritize integration, promote immigrant entrepreneurship, increase access to language instruction, and promote civil engagement.
- Meet with leaders of El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and Canada, to address the factors driving migration and to propose a regional resettlement solution.
There is a lot to like here. A key question will be which way the Senate will lean, as a president fully backed by Congress can get more done than one with Congress working against him. With that being said, much of the above can be pushed through as executive orders by the president alone, which is the same mechanism President Trump often utilized to enact his controversial immigration policies. More information on Biden’s immigration platform is available here.
As Biden takes office in January, we will continue to cover all relevant policy updates on our blog and monthly newsletter. After four years of writing about ever more concerning immigration policies, we look forward to being able to share some more positive information and stories. And, of course, there is the more immediate concern of the outgoing Trump administration, and what, if any, further damage they could do before January. Also, it is going to take time to undo all the harm done by the Trump administration.
If you have any question or concerns about your immigration status, or are wondering whether you are better off filing something now or waiting until Biden comes into office, contact us to schedule a consultation!