Admin to Propose New Asylum Standards  05/09 06:04

   The Biden administration plans to propose a new rule Thursday aimed at 
speeding up the asylum claims process for some migrants -- a potential prelude 
to broader actions from President Joe Biden later this year that would impose a 
bigger crackdown at the border.

   WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Biden administration plans to propose a new rule 
Thursday aimed at speeding up the asylum claims process for some migrants -- a 
potential prelude to broader actions from President Joe Biden later this year 
that would impose a bigger crackdown at the border.

   It's meant to affect migrants with criminal records or those who would 
otherwise be eventually deemed ineligible for asylum in the United States. The 
proposal, which the Department of Homeland Security plans to announce on 
Thursday, was confirmed by four people familiar with its contents who were 
granted anonymity to detail plans not yet public.

   Under current law, a migrant who arrives at the border and undergoes an 
initial screening for "credible fear" -- one criterion for asylum -- is allowed 
to continue with the process even if they have a criminal background or would 
pose a security risk. A judge would later determine whether that migrant would 
be eligible for asylum.

   The change would effectively let an officer at the initial screening stage 
make that determination, rather than waiting for a judge, according to the 
people. The people also said the proposal affects a relatively small universe 
of migrants and those who would not be qualified to receive asylum protections 
anyway.

   But despite those caveats, immigration advocates have previously raised 
questions about any changes to the credible fear process, saying that migrants 
are often doing these interviews immediately after surviving life-threatening 
perilous trips to get to the U.S.

   Because of this, initial interviews are designed to have a relatively lower 
bar so that migrants aren't wrongfully deported, they say. And they've 
questioned how much legal help migrants who are in custody can actually get in 
order to prepare them for this key first step toward an asylum claim.

   It will likely be months before Thursday's proposal, which was first 
reported by Politico, would actually go into effect. Biden continues to mull 
larger executive action on the border, whose timing depends in large part on 
whether the number of illegal border crossings increases -- they have been 
steadily decreasing since December.

   The proposed rule also comes amid pressure from fellow Democrats and 
immigrant rights advocates to support immigrants already in the United States.

   Janet Murgua, the president of UnidosUS, a civil rights advocacy 
organization, said she met with Biden last week at the White House with other 
Latino leaders to push for relief for immigrants who do not have legal status 
but have been in the United States for years.

   "I believe that President Biden is open to this notion that he can do 
something. He asked for more specifics," Murgua said. "We're going to make the 
case in the White House. We're going to make the case here in the Capitol, 
across the country, in every community."

   At a news conference Wednesday, Latino and progressive congressional 
Democrats expressed frustration at the idea that the White House would clamp 
down on the border without also assisting immigrants who crossed the border 
illegally as children.

   "Mr. President, we know what's in your heart. Let's reject the extremist 
messaging vilifying immigrants. Let's embrace our values as a nation of 
immigrants and provide relief for the long-term residents of the United 
States," said Sen. Alex Padilla, a California Democrat.

   The lawmakers are calling for the Biden administration to provide relief 
from deportation to spouses and other family members of U.S. citizens, as well 
as extended temporary protected status, which allows people from countries 
ravaged by disaster and war to live and work legally in the United States.

   At the same time, Democrats, especially those in political swing states, are 
encouraging the White House to take unilateral action to curtail border 
crossings.

   In the Senate, Democrats are considering whether to put a series of border 
proposals to a vote in order to show that Republicans are opposed to swifter 
border enforcement. And in the House, 15 Democrats penned a letter to the White 
House this week encouraging executive actions.

   "We need to make sure that we are adjudicating those who are coming across 
just as quickly as possible, specifically around sort of administrative judges 
being down at the southern border," said Rep. Angie Craig, a Minnesota Democrat 
who led the letter. "And I do think there's a limit to the number of people who 
we can accept into our nation on an asylum claim. At the end of the day, we 
cannot have a border where an unlimited amount of people can simply cross."