Biden Admin Plans to Reimplement Trump-Era Immigration Policy in November

The 🏛️Biden administration said it anticipates “being in a position” to reimplement the Trump administration’s “Remain in Mexico” policy in November.

The policy requires asylum seekers to remain in Mexico while they are waiting for hearings in the United States.

The Department of Homeland Security noted in a statement the agency issued a memo in June, terminating the policy. The department then pointed out a district court in Texas “vacated the termination memo and issued an injunction that requires DHS to work in good faith to re-start MPP. DHS appealed the injunction.”

The agency said it “disagrees with the court’s ruling. However, as part of our compliance, DHS filed a status report Thursday outlining the steps it has taken to follow the law and abide by the court’s order.”

The statement continued, “Mexico is a sovereign nation that must make an independent decision to accept the return of individuals pursuant to any reimplementation of MPP. That decision has not been made. Discussions with the Government of Mexico are ongoing.”

The agency will be “issuing a memo terminating MPP in which it will address concerns about the prior memo that sought to terminate MPP. This new memo terminating MPP will not, however, take effect until the current injunction is lifted.”

In a late-night court filing issued Thursday, the department said it has “made substantial progress toward the re-implementation of MPP,” adding, “As a result of this progress, DHS anticipates being in a position to re-implement MPP by mid-November – dependent on decisions made by Mexico.”

The filing mentioned the changes Mexico would like to see before the policy is re-implemented, including “an assurance that cases are generally adjudicated within six months of enrollment and that individuals awaiting court hearings in Mexico receive timely and accurate information about hearing dates and times.”