SAN DIEGO (AP) – The Biden administration is set to reinstate a Trump-era policy this week to make asylum-seekers wait in Mexico for hearings in U.S. immigration court – with changes and additions.
The first migrants are to be sent from El Paso, Texas, back to Ciudad Juarez, according to a U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity because details were not made public. Timing was in flux as officials made final preparations, but returns from El Paso may begin Monday or Tuesday, capped at 50 people a day.
The Homeland Security Department didn’t immediately respond to questions Monday about the location and timing.
Revival of the “Remain in Mexico” policy comes even as the Biden administration maneuvers to end it in a way that survives legal scrutiny. President Joe Biden scrapped the policy, but a lawsuit by Texas and Missouri has forced him to put it back into effect, subject to Mexico’s acceptance.
WHAT IS THE ‘REMAIN IN MEXICO’ POLICY?