Washington DC, January 21: After his inaugural ceremony, President Joe Biden kicked off his maiden term by signing a series of immigration executive actions swiftly moving to undo numerous immigration policies that were in vogue during the Trump administration and also put an end to the national emergency that had already diverted several millions of dollars to the nation’s border wall as well.
Biden charted a go-getting immigration agenda on the campaign trail that would reverse the actions of his forerunners, swearing-in – for example, to introduce wide-ranging immigration regulations and maintain agendas that are aimed at providing relief to the millions of immigrants who have long adopted the United States as their homeland.
While certain changes are all set to be rolled out and begin operations by this week, other immigration policy changes and implementation will take some more time.
Appearing as president in the Oval Office for the first time, Biden told reporters, “There’s a long way to go. These are just executive actions; “but we’re going to need legislation for a lot of these we’re going to do.” This of course includes the immigration bill of the administration that paves the perfect pathway to US nationality for immigrants who are living in the country without any formal documents.
According to incoming White House officials, the new immigration bill is all set to modernize the current immigration system of the US, invest in technological advancements and provide aid to Central America.
Some of the major actions or focus points of Biden in terms of administration are explained in the subsequent paragraphs:
Continue Preserving DACA
The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program aimed at shielding undocumented immigrants who arrived in the US from deportation as children—popular during the Obama era, has been in limbo since Trump tried terminating the same in 2017.
Biden in consultation with the Homeland Security secretary and the attorney has already taken the necessary actions in order to preserve the DACA program.
Pause Construction of Border Wall
Biden has taken major action in terms of ending the national emergency announcement that allowed the former president to dig into extra funds for the border wall and will put the construction of the wall into a standstill until further review.
The border wall that Trump continuously projects as an “accomplishment”, in fact, cost US taxpayers and not Mexico, as Trump repeatedly promised, of course on false grounds. Since 2017, roughly $17 billion have been known to have been spent on the border wall through various funds including those declared as national emergency funds.
Send Comprehensive Immigration Policies to Congress
The well-chalked out the bill is aimed at providing an instantaneous alley to citizenship for individuals working on the farm, DACA recipients, and those who currently happen to be Temporary Status holders. It drafts out a proper plan for undocumented immigrants that would permit them to finally apply for a green card if they clear all the steps to background checks and also pay taxes. The bill also aims to improve immigration courts and clear visa backlogs thus contributing to better immigration policies.
Along with the above-mentioned measures, Biden is all set to focus on other major measures including reversing the travel ban on Islamic countries, extending relief for Liberians, and ramp down the “remain in Mexico” program.
As US citizens look forward to a better and probably a more “peaceful” America, Biden’s long list of measures across all verticals within the administration is definitely instilled hopes in billions of Americans who are looking to experience just a slice of the ‘Big American Dream.’
Sources: New York Times, CNN
