Once A Symbol of Fairness, Due Process, & Best Practices, Now Gone “Belly Up”
Dean Kevin Johnson writes:
The provisions of the U.S. Citizenship Act is getting lots of attention, from the change in alien terminology to a path to legalization for undocumented immigrants and more. Anna Giaritelli for the Washington Examiner, a self-declared conservative publication, notes five things that the Biden administration’s comprehensive immigration reform bill does not address. Some of the omissions might bother readers; some might not:
1. Family and children detention protocols: The bill does not incorporate the Flores settlement governing the detention of immigrant minors. The Trump administration tried but failed to abrogate the settlement.
2. Border wall infrastructure: No surprise. The U.S./Mexico border wall, which President Trump championed, is not part of the bill’s enforcement plans. The Biden administration already had made it clear that construction of the wall was not a priority of his administration.
3. Decriminalization of illegal entry into the United States: This was an issue in the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries. Representative Julian Castro called for the repeal 8 U.S.C. § 1325, which criminalizes unlawful entry into the country.
4. Immigration courts: The immigration bill calls for an additional 220 immigration judges but fails to make major improvements in the immigration court system, such as increasing their independence, neutrality, and professionalism of the corps of immigration judges. The American Bar Association has declared that the immigration court system is “on the brink of collapse.”
5. No end to private-run detention facilities: Immigrant rights advocates have called for the end of private (for profit) immigrant detention. President Biden has ended private prisons for inmates.
KJ
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As I have previously mentioned, I expect a “stand alone” Article I Bill 🧑🏽⚖️ to be introduced in the House shortly. It could be combined with the Immigration Court improvements in the Biden Bill.
We need to keep the pressure on until Article I happens!
🇺🇸⚖️🗽🧑🏽⚖️Due Process Forever!
PWS
02-24-21