Border walls. The Biden administration is moving forward with 20 miles of new border wall.
President Biden, when he was a candidate for the office, swore that he would never build a single foot of border wall. He admits border walls don’t work.
Migrants whose lives have ended because walls have pushed them into more treacherous terrain. It’s an expense that has not deterred migration or border crossings.
As more border walls are constructed, more crossing attempts have occurred. The President says that his hands are tied by a 2019 Bill signed into law by President Trump.
Money that’s for “barriers” in the Rio Grande Valley. But nothing in that law requires the President to build Trump-style border walls.
It doesn’t obligate him to bypass 26 federal rules and laws meant to protect the environment, wildlife, people, and the cultural heritage of the Rio Grande Valley.
There’s a lot more the President can do to ensure the border is safe and secure. Those trying to come to this country can follow a safe, legal, and orderly path.
One: Make It Easier To Apply For Asylum
We need to make it easier for people to apply for asylum. Right now, there’s a bottleneck in the asylum application process.
There are a limited number of appointments, and there are many people who are trying to get one and are unable to do so for months.
The answer to this is to open up more asylum appointments.
Two: Relieve Pressure On The Border Cities
The second thing the president can do is to relieve pressure on the cities that are welcoming migrants and asylum seekers right now.
The federal government can help coordinate between these different communities. Ensuring they have the resources so they’re not bearing this burden on their own.
Three: Expand Temporary Protected Status (TPS)
The third thing the President can do is to expand Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for more migrants from more countries. These are the kinds of countries that people cannot go back to.
We want to ensure they have work authorization while they’re here. So they’re not a drain on public resources. That will allow them to provide for themselves and also give back to the communities that they’re living in.
Four: Make The Asylum Process Quicker
The fourth thing that the President can do is to make the asylum process much quicker. People can be stuck in limbo for months, sometimes years. Let’s make sure that they get a decision right away.
If their asylum application is approved, they can stay in the United States. If it’s rejected, they must return to the country they came from.
Five: More Asylum Judges
Hiring more asylum judges and making sure this process works a lot faster is going to be great for everyone involved.
It’s time we get past failed policies like building more walls and get to real solutions that can work in the short term and long term. These are some things that the President can do right now.
These will lay the groundwork for his next administration. Then, they can work on comprehensive immigration reform with Congress and build on the successes that he’s had in his first four years in office.