Assignment task:
On Tuesday, President Biden announced a large-scale immigration program offering unauthorized immigrants married to American citizens legal status and an expedited pathway to citizenship for them and their children. The executive order will allow applicants to live and work in the United States legally under an existing policy called "Parole in Place," which grants temporary legal status for immigrants seeking long-term residency. Immigrants who have been living without authorization in the U.S. for at least ten years, have not previously been paroled into the country, do not pose a security threat, and have been married by June 17, 2024 will be eligible to apply with the Department of Homeland Security "by the end of summer."
Once accepted into the program, immigrants will be able work in the U.S. legally for three to five years before applying for citizenship. The government estimates the program will apply to roughly 500,000 spouses of U.S. citizens, as well as an estimated 50,000 children of unauthorized immigrants and step-children of U.S. citizens.
Under current law, a non-citizen residing in the U.S. illegally and married to a U.S. citizen would have to leave the United States and apply to re-enter the country legally to seek legal status. Depending on how they entered the country and how long they have lived in the U.S. without authorization, the spouse could have to stay abroad for up to 10 years before being allowed to apply to come back. Applicants can opt to apply for a waiver to avoid the waiting period, but that process averages about three and a half years to complete.
"For those wives or husbands and their children who have lived in America for a decade or more, but are undocumented, this action will allow them to file paperwork for legal status in the United States, allowing them to work while they remain with their families in the United States," President Biden said.
The announcement follows an executive order from Biden earlier this month capping the number of asylum seekers allowed entry into the United States, which upset many of the president's liberal supporters.
The policy is the first expansion of Parole in Place since Congress authorized extending the program to immediate relatives of veterans of the armed forces in 2020, and if upheld will be the largest government program for undocumented immigrants since the Deferred Action Childhood Arrivals program (DACA) was announced in 2012. DACA was implemented by executive action during the Obama administration, and President Biden reinstated the program after it was repealed during Trump's term. The program currently shields 528,000 so-called "Dreamers" - unauthorized immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children - from deportation. Biden's announcement came on DACA's 12-year anniversary.
Relatedly, the State Department also announced on Tuesday a streamlined process for DACA recipients and other undocumented immigrants who have graduated from U.S. colleges to more easily obtain work visas.
Republicans attacked the move as cynical politics. Former President Trump, who said he would reverse the order if elected, claimed that Biden was "using" the immigrants for political gain.
"But he's going to let everybody come in, because you know what they're trying to do, they're trying to sign these people up and register them," Trump said during a rally in Wisconsin on Tuesday afternoon.
What the Left is saying
The left supports the order, calling it both compassionate and politically savvy.
Some say Biden still needs to do more to contrast his immigration policy with Trump's.
Others criticize the right for moving the goalposts on this issue.
What the Right is saying
The right opposes the order, arguing it's a political ploy that doesn't address the immigration crisis.
Some say the order tacitly incentivizes undocumented migration.
Others suggest the move will fall flat with voters.
What Isaac Saul is saying
The best framing of this action is that it's a popular policy affecting only people already integrated into the U.S.
The worst framing is that it affects a large number of people and could be a moral hazard or strong incentive for illegal immigration.
I worry about the signals and timing, but think the combination of Biden's recent actions are directionally correct.
Questions:
Q1. In your judgment, what was the best point made from the RIGHT? Why?
Q2. In your judgment, what was the best point made from the LEFT? Why?
Q3. What was a point (it does not matter if it comes from left or right) that you disagree with? Please respectfully state your reason(s) for disagreeing.
Q4. In your opinion, what is the most interesting point made by Saul above? Please state your reason(s) for finding it interesting.
Q5. What was a point made by Saul that you do not fully agree with? Please state your reason(s) for disagreeing.