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ImmigrationProf Blog
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Joe Biden’s Emerging – and Evolving – Immigration Policies

By immigrationprof

As the presidential campaigns continue, voters are learning more about Biden-Harris’ stances on immigration. Supplementing ImmigrationProf’s analysis of the DNC Convention, Roll Call summarizes the plans as reversing Trump’s policies (platform says, “We will start by righting the wrongs of the Trump Administration”) and pursuing comprehensive immigration reform in Congress.

Some of the key proposals for the first 100 days in Biden’s platform and media interviews:

  • Ending construction of a border wall. “There will not be another foot of wall constructed on my administration… I’m going to make sure that we have border protection, but it’s going to be based on making sure that we use high-tech capacity to deal with it. And at the ports of entry — that’s where all the bad stuff is happening,” he said.
  • Reversing Trump executive orders by rescinding various travel and asylum bans, ending the “Remain in Mexico” and “metering” border policies that prevent migrants seeking asylum from entering the United States
  • Ending family separation and the use of for-profit detention centers.
  • Reversing the public charge rule that functions as a wealth test for immigrants seeking a green card
  • Reinstating and extending protections for undocumented immigrants been protected by the Deferred Action on Childhood Arrivals program. Granting these so-called “Dreamers” access to federal student loans. (VP Candidate Kamala Harris sought to use executive action for this purpose when she was running for President.)
  • Raising the current refugee ceiling from 18,000, a historic low, to 125,000
  • Over the course of his first year, Biden has vowed to “commit significant political capital to deliver legislative immigration reform.” Proposals would include allowing more people into the legal immigration system (including high skilled and agricultural workers), providing a roadmap for citizenship for 11 million undocumented people now in the country, limiting executive power to enact discrimintary travel bans. 
  • Over the course of his presidency, Biden says he will expand efforts to address the root causes of unauthorized migration in Central America (a focus of his during the Obama administration).

Biden’s views are more fleshed out than they were previously and indicate evolution from Obama positions on family detention at the border and fast-tracked immigration hearings, yet they remain  moderate compared to progressive Democrats and advocates. For example, instead of calling to abolish ICE or enforce a 100-day moratorium on deporations, the Biden platform seeks to “increase resources for training and demand transparency in, and independent oversight” over ICE and returns to a system of prioritized enforcement used under the Obama administration.

MHC