Sen. Lindsey Graham said Sunday that President Biden’s policy of allowing migrants to remain in the United States while they wait for asylum is what is delaying a bipartisan deal on aid to Ukraine and border security.
Republicans have long criticized the Biden administration’s so-called “parole” policy, which allows migrants to enter the United States and remain there while their asylum claims are resolved in court.
Senate negotiators from both sides struggled to rectify their differences over asylum policy — and ultimately couldn’t reach an agreement — before adjourning for the winter break, Graham said.
“The problem is probation,” Graham (R-SC) told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday. “This administration does not want to get rid of the tool they are abusing.
“Under our parole law, people who are outside or inside the country can be admitted into the country on an individual basis,” Graham said.
“They’ve been taking the parole statute and granting mass parole, blanket parole,” he said of the Democratic White House.
Sens. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.), James Lankford (R-Okla.) and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) have been the lead negotiators seeking to reach a deal.
Senate negotiators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) have taken the lead in trying to reach a bipartisan agreement on border security and aid to Ukraine. fake images
Republicans have made border security a priority in approving additional aid to war-torn Ukraine, which will run out of funds in the coming weeks.
Biden has requested $61.4 billion in additional aid for Ukraine, money that was included in a broader package proposed in October that includes support for Israel, Indo-Pacific allies and border security.
But Republicans criticized the package’s border security provisions as woefully insufficient, sparking negotiations.
During fiscal year 2023, more than 2.47 million encounters with migrants were reported near the U.S.-Mexico border, and more than 240,000 asylum seekers were detained in October alone, according to U.S. Customs and Customs Enforcement data. United States Border Protection.
Many of the immigrants who arrive in the country apply for asylum near the border and are then released into the United States with the expectation that they will appear for a court hearing that can take years due to the huge backlog of cases.
Progressives generally believe that seeking asylum is a basic human right and fear putting more obstacles in the way of seeking refuge in the United States.
Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) was deeply involved with the so-called Gang of Eight senators who helped draft a comprehensive immigration reform package in 2013 that passed the Senate but was not voted on in the House. AP
Moderate Democrats seem somewhat willing to close loopholes in the asylum process, but they don’t want to go as far as Republicans.
“We want to change the laws and increase resources to the border so that many fewer people cross and many fewer people are released into the country who do not have a legitimate claim to asylum,” Murphy told Connecticut Public Radio earlier this month .
“Republicans want to close the border, just close it, so that even people legitimately fleeing terror and torture don’t have a chance to make their case.”
Apparently seeking to end the impasse before Christmas, the White House sent representatives to try to help reach a deal.
Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) has stressed that he is working hard to help reach a deal. CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
The White House has open authority to expel immigrants without asylum tests under certain conditions when daily crossing levels are excessively high, the Washington Post reported.
The administration also reportedly proposed an expansion of detention centers and increased deportations to appease Republicans.
Biden has publicly indicated that he has made a compromise offer to Republicans, although he did not reveal any details.
But it proved difficult to reach a decisive agreement before the senators returned home for the holidays.
Another complication is the “deeply technical” language of the immigration law, according to Lankford.
A group of newly arrived migrants board a U.S. Border Patrol van to be taken to a makeshift transit center after crossing the Rio Grande from Mexico to Eagle Pass, Texas. LET’S GO NAKAMURA
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has described efforts to reform the U.S. legal immigration system as the most significant changes since former President Ronald Reagan helped modernize the system in 1986. .
Congress is expected to revisit the issue when it reconvenes in January. Negotiators continue talks during the break.
Additionally, Congress is grappling with a Jan. 19 deadline to pass the first tranche of spending bills or risk a partial government shutdown.
So far, no spending bill has passed both chambers.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn