Two very different situations as the Biden admin deals with a problem that is NEVER gonna go away and is even more complicated by the virus pandemic….
The Souther Border….
The Biden administration on Friday resumed fast-track deportation flights to Central America following another spike in families crossing the border into the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.
The administration announced plans to resume the expedited removals on Monday, responding to building pressure on the White House to increase enforcement at the Southern border as the Covid Delta variant spreads in Texas and across the U.S.
“Families apprehended by Customs and Border Protection were removed via U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Air Operations to their home countries of Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras,” a statement from the Department of Homeland Security said. “The expedited removal process is a lawful means to securely manage our border, and it is a step toward our broader aim to realize safe and orderly immigration processing.”
The Biden administration has continued to use the public health order, known as Title 42, which was invoked by former President Donald Trump at the start of the pandemic to expel migrants without allowing them to seek asylum. Biden has declined to use Title 42 to deport minors crossing into the U.S.
The administration was expected to start phasing out its use of Title 42 this summer, beginning with allowing migrant families to seek asylum. But as the U.S. enters the next uncertain phase of the pandemic and returns to mitigation measures such as masks, the administration has delayed lifting the restrictions.
Democratic lawmakers and immigration advocates have called on the Biden administration to ditch the Trump-era policy, saying its use is unlawful, inhumane and not justified by public health. The groups say migrants could instead be tested for Covid and isolated upon entering the U.S. to prevent the spread of the virus.
The White House’s announcement Monday that it planned to speed up deportations for families that could not be expelled under Title 42 infuriated advocates…
The Northern Border…
Nine governors want the Biden administration to explain why it is keeping the U.S. border closed to most Canadians.
“It is our strongly held view as Governors that the public health data, science and advice of our own experts support a responsible, timely reopening plan,” the border state governors wrote in a joint letter, dated Friday, to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
“At this point in the nation’s work to get the economy back on track, it is imperative that the federal government work more closely and transparently with us and our Canadian provincial counterparts to quickly define and implement a reopening plan.”
The Trudeau government announced last week that fully vaccinated Americans will be allowed to enter Canada for discretionary travel starting Aug. 9.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s decision came amid climbing vaccination rates in Canada and falling Covid caseloads and hospitalizations.
A couple of days later, the Biden administration renewed its restrictions on nonessential travel at U.S.-Canada land and ferry crossings until at least Aug. 21. U.S. officials have cited the continued spread of Covid within the U.S. and globally as well as the Delta variant’s emergence as factors.
The U.S. decision was met with frustration. For months, families separated from loved ones, business leaders and lawmakers have been upping the pressure on President Joe Biden to loosen border measures or at least provide a detailed plan.
The border, which is a key source of economic activity for communities on both sides, has been shuttered to discretionary travelers since the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020….