Key Takeaways:
- The US Government is implementing strict measures to prevent illegal immigration into the country
- The Title 42 measure, implemented by Donald Trump, comes to an end on May 11
- Joe Biden had been a vocal critic of the strict immigration policies of the Republican Administration
YEREVAN (CoinChapter.com) — The United States is getting ready to experience an influx of immigrants at its border with Mexico. The notorious Title 42 measure, implemented by the Donald Trump Administration as a Covid-19 pandemic measure, comes to an end on May 11, 2023.
However, President Joe Biden is in no mood to allow asylum seekers to easily enter the country. He has decided to fall back on his predecessor’s policy of cracking down on illegal immigration.
The Biden Administration will deny asylum to migrants who show up at the border without first completing an online application. Those wanting to enter the US must prove that they have also sought protection in a third country before reaching the border.
To enforce the new policy, the Government has trained hundreds of asylum officers to implement the necessary measures, according to local reports.
The new measure will also levy penalties on those that try to illegally cross the border into the United States. These may range from fines (anywhere from $50 to $250) or imprisonment between six months to two years per attempt. Anyone who has previously been fined or imprisoned for the same price will have to pay twice as much.
While announcing the new measures, Joe Biden admitted that the situation on the US-Mexico border is “going to be chaotic for a while.”
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What is the Title 42 measure?
In March 2020, when news of the COVID pandemic broke, the Trump Administration implemented the Title 42 measure that put restrictions on cross-border immigration. It came as a preventive measure upon the recommendation of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The agency insisted that the order was needed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Under the guise of this policy, border agents rapidly expelled many migrants to Mexico. According to official government figures, Title 42 was used as many as 2.7 million times to expel migrants from its border with Mexico.
Several public health experts, human rights advocates, and Democrats had criticized the measure. Calling it draconian, they slammed former President Donald Trump for using COVID as an excuse to curb immigration.
Joe Biden was also one of the most vocal critics of the measure. During his successful election campaign, he vowed to reverse the restrictive approach. However, after taking oath as President, he went back on his promise and even expanded the ambit of the rule.
With the deadline of the measure now expiring, several held-up immigrants thought they would finally succeed in seeking asylum. However, Biden’s approach to illegal immigration is no different from that of Trump’s.
Several experts believe that the measure will face legal challenges. A Federal Court in the US struck down a similar policy in 2020, which Biden had denounced. Meanwhile, the Biden Administration’s promises of making the migration process easier remain on paper.
