A congressional aide with knowledge of the discussions said the Biden administration had yet to make a decision, but that raising the bar on asylum and deporting more newly arrived migrants was considered “low-hanging fruit” and quick action.
Three US officials said it was unclear whether the policy would succeed executive order or new federal regulationthis may take months to implement.
Hardening asylum claims and tracking fast-track migrants for deportation aren’t new ideas, but they’re getting more serious consideration as the Biden administration looks for ways to ease the chaos at the border after Republicans blocked border security provisions in the National Security Amendment. bill earlier this month.
In the absence of a bill, the president takes any action unilaterally coverage will be limited because the Department of Homeland Security is underfunded.
ICE currently faces a budget shortfall of more than $500 million Sources told NBC News last week that without more money from Congress, it could begin cutting basic services by May.
A DHS official expressed skepticism about the “last-in, first-out” policy because it would leave millions of migrants already in the U.S., including thousands of homeless migrants in major cities, on a long legal backlog as immigration cases are put on the back burner. of the line.
A DHS spokesman emphasized that Congress still needs to act to ensure that border enforcement is not compromised.
“If Congress once again refuses to provide the critical funding needed to support DHS’s vital missions, they will harm DHS’s efforts to provide tough and timely results to those without legal grounds to remain in the country,” the spokesperson said. “There are real limits to what we can do given the available funding because Congress has not been able to pass a budget or meet the President’s two supplemental budget requests. We again call on Congress to act and provide the funding and tools our frontline personnel need.”