Biden: Promises Kept / Promises Broken: on Immigration

Joe Biden: Refugee cap up from 15,000 to 62,500, but promised 125,000

PROMISE PARTLY KEPT: (WhiteHouse.gov, 5/3/21): I am revising the annual refugee admissions cap to 62,500. This erases the historically low number set by the previous administration of 15,000, which did not reflect America's values as a nation that welcomes and supports refugees. The new admissions cap will also reinforce efforts that are already underway to expand the United States' capacity to admit refugees, so that we can reach the goal of 125,000 refugee admissions that I intend to set for the coming fiscal year.

Joe Biden: Promised 125,000 refugees; but accepted fewer than Trump

PROMISE CONFIRMED: (Proposed Emergency Presidential Determination on Refugee Admissions, 2/12/21): This report proposes providing allocations by region, with a new FY 2021 admissions number of 62,500 refugees.

PROMISE BROKEN: (NBC News, 4/16/21): Biden will not increase the number of refugees allowed to enter the U.S. this year. Biden notified Congress in February that he would increase the number of refugees allowed to enter the country from 15,000 to 62,500. But he never signed the presidential determination that would actually raise the cap. Analysis: Biden is on track to accept the fewest refugees this year of any modern president, including Trump.

Joe Biden: Revoke Trump's ban on refugees seeking asylum

PROMISE PARTLY KEPT: (Executive Order Feb. 4, 2021): Sec. 2. Revocation, Rescission, and Reporting. (a) Executive Order 13815 of October 24, 2017 (Resuming the United States Refugee Admissions Program With Enhanced Vetting Capabilities), and Executive Order 13888 of September 26, 2019 (Enhancing State and Local Involvement in Refugee Resettlement), are revoked.

OnTheIssues ANALYSIS: Biden undid Trump's cancellation of refugee admissions. That DOES "improve" the asylum system, compared to what Trump did, but Biden's bigger promise is to improve the asylum system compared to what Obama did before Trump--that improvement is yet to be seen.

Joe Biden: Task Force on Reunification of Families at Mexican border

PROMISE KEPT:(Executive Order on Reunification, Feb. 2, 2021): There is hereby established an Interagency Task Force on the Reunification of Families. The Task Force shall identify all children who were separated from their families at the US-Mexico border in connection with the operation of the Zero-Tolerance Policy [and] facilitate and enable the reunification of each of the identified children with their families.

OnTheIssues ANALYSIS: Establishing a Task Force is a good start--as well as overturning Trump's controversial policy of family separation at the southern border. But actual reunification will take years (and the promised billions).

Joe Biden: Focus on causes of migration within Northern Triangle

PROMISE KEPT:(Executive Order on Causes of Migration, 2/2/21): We will work closely with international organizations and governments in the region to: establish a comprehensive strategy for addressing the causes of migration; build, strengthen, and expand Central American countries' asylum systems and resettlement capacity; and increase opportunities for vulnerable populations to apply for protection closer to home.

OnTheIssues ANALYSIS: Biden's order includes the Northern Triangle and "causes of migration"--contrasting Trump's focus on border enforcement, which included the "Remain-in-Mexico policy" for Northern Triangle asylum seekers.

Alejandro Mayorkas: We'd like to stop border wall, but Congress required it

PROMISE BROKEN: (Reuters, 10/6/23): Biden's administration said it will add sections to a border wall to stave off record migrant crossings from Mexico, carrying forward a signature policy of former President Trump. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said the construction project was appropriated during the prior administration and the law requires the government to use the funds, with an announcement made earlier in the year. "We have repeatedly asked Congress to rescind this money but it has not done so and we are compelled to follow the law," he said.

Joe Biden: Promised "not another foot of wall"; but added Southern wall

PROMISE BROKEN: (Reuters, 10/6/23): Biden's administration said it will add sections to a border wall to stave off record migrant crossings from Mexico. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said the construction project was appropriated during the prior administration and the law requires the government to use the funds. "We have repeatedly asked Congress to rescind this money but it has not done so and we are compelled to follow the law," he said.