NY Times: Biden Admin Officials 'Relieved' SCOTUS Restored Trump's 'Remain in Mexico' Policy
The New York Times reported Monday that members of President Joe Biden’s administration felt “relief” after the Supreme Court allowed former President Donald Trump’s “Remain in Mexico” policy to be reinstated.
Late last month, the high court declined to block an order from a Texas federal judge requiring the policy, officially known as the Migrant Protection Protocols, to be put back in place.
“The applicants have failed to show a likelihood of success on the claim that the memorandum rescinding the Migrant Protection Protocols was not arbitrary and capricious,” the Supreme Court’s order said.
In June 2020, the justices prevented Trump from ending the Deferred Action on Childhood Arrivals program, employing similar reasoning.
The court’s ruling against the Biden administration on rescinding the Migrant Protection Protocols was welcomed by some in its ranks, according to the Times.
“[A]mong some Biden officials, the Supreme Court’s order was quietly greeted with something other than dismay, current and former officials said: It brought some measure of relief,” the paper reported.
“Before that ruling, Mr. Biden’s steps to begin loosening the reins on migration had been quickly followed by a surge of people heading north, overwhelming the southwest border of the United States. Apprehensions of migrants hit a two-decade high in July, a trend officials fear will continue into the fall.”
More than 212,000 illegal aliens were apprehended in July – a number quite literally off the charts.
This is a direct result of #BidenBorderCrisis and his refusal to stop it. pic.twitter.com/buLdIvFgKN
— Brian Babin (@RepBrianBabin) August 13, 2021
“Concern had already been building inside the Biden administration that the speed of its immigration changes may have encouraged migrants to stream toward the United States, current and former officials said.”
“May have encouraged” — now that is an understatement.
Times is far too generous to Biden administration, suggesting they’re just now realizing border policies ‘may have encouraged’ migrant surge. That’s been obvious from beginning. Now, worry is Biden-created mess ‘could have electoral repercussions.’ https://t.co/xBtczSzbpN
— Byron York (@ByronYork) September 6, 2021
On his first day in office, Biden issued executive orders ending border wall construction and shutting down the Migrant Protection Protocols, prompting the worst migrant crisis in 21 years.
There have been over 1.3 million illegal border crossings in the current fiscal year, including approximately 212,000 in the month of July alone.
The Times reported that some Biden officials “were already talking about reviving Mr. Trump’s policy in a limited way to deter migration.”
“Then the Supreme Court order came, providing the Biden administration with the political cover to adopt the policy in some form without provoking as much ire from Democrats who reviled Mr. Trump’s border policies,” the paper reported.
“But the ambivalence within corners of the Biden administration reflects a broader worry: that the border crisis could have electoral repercussions for the Democrats, potentially dooming hopes of pushing through a more significant overhaul of the nation’s migration and asylum systems.”
Their concern is well-founded.
An ABC News/Ipsos poll taken during the last week of August found 56 percent of those surveyed disapproved of Biden’s handling of immigration and the U.S.-Mexico border, while 41 percent approved.
Only the president’s handling of Afghanistan scored worse, with 59 percent disapproving and 38 percent approving.
The administration, no doubt, is hopeful voters will mostly forget about Afghanistan by next fall, but the border crisis is ongoing, and without a policy change will likely not get any better.
Everyone knows the “Remain in Mexico” program is vital to getting control of the Biden-created border crisis. Republicans have said so for months.
Now it turns out the Biden admin privately agreed but fought it in court to please their radical base. https://t.co/nZbEWXxmAl
— Kevin McCarthy (@GOPLeader) September 6, 2021
So the Supreme Court, at least temporarily, has given Biden a break from carrying one of his two heaviest political weights.
Meanwhile, the Times story seems designed to reassure moderate or swing voters that the president’s team already recognized the border is a mess and something needs to change.
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