The Trump administration “continues to advance its policies to restrict legal immigration, halting the flow of foreign workers and raising the bar for asylum seekers hoping for sanctuary,” report Zolan Kanno-Youngs and Maggie Haberman in the New York Times.
They report that administration officials last week “proposed a fallback for when they need to lift “emergency” border closure rules for the coronavirus, proposing regulations that would raise the standard of proof for migrants hoping to obtain asylum and allow immigration judges to deny applications for protection without giving migrants an opportunity to testify in court.”
The proposal would make it harder for immigrants to claim asylum in the U.S., even after the COVID-19 pandemic, writes Julia Ainsley for NBC News.
“If enacted after a public comment period, the rule would allow immigration judges to throw out asylum cases before holding a hearing,” she reported.
Critics say the proposed changes “are so severe that they would effectively shut down the asylum system in this country,” NPR reported.
The draft regulations are available here.
The Immigration and Refugee News Digest 