US Immigration: Title 42 Ends

Facts

• On Thursday, Title 42, the COVID-era public health order that was used 2.8M times to turn away migrants at the US border since it was first instituted in March 2020, expired.¹
• While the US Customs and Border Protection announced that it has been holding as many as 28K migrants at its facilities — well beyond its stated capacity — thousands of migrants gathered on both sides of the US-Mexico border in anticipation of Title 42 ending.²
• Without Title 42, a newly-implemented Biden admin. rule will deny asylum to most migrants who cross the border illegally.³
• Also Thursday, the Republican-led US House passed 219-213 a bill to boost funding for personnel and equipment for authorities at the border, and to make it harder to seek asylum. The Democrat-majority Senate said it doesn’t plan to schedule a vote on the measure, and the Biden admin. said it would veto the bill if passed.⁴
• US Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on Wednesday attempted to tamp down concerns over the border situation by saying local law enforcement will receive federal support, including the deployment of 1.5K troops. The US also has a deal in place with Mexico to send thousands of non-Mexican migrants there each month.⁵
• At the time Title 42 was first enacted, then-Pres. Trump cited its necessity in stopping the spread of COVID. Biden has continued the policy, but its expiration coincides with the end of the pandemic public health emergency order.¹

Sources: ¹Al Jazeera ²Reuters, ³Guardian, ⁴Wall Street Journal, and ⁵Washington Post.

Narratives

• Democratic narrative, as provided by Daily Kos. The implementation of Title 42 was a xenophobic move by the Trump admin. that went against the advice of public health experts. Biden's continuation of the policy was a shameful act that’s finally being rectified. The answer to slowing illegal migration is compassionate comprehensive immigration reform, not a continuation of anything that’s been enforced under Title 42 over the past three years.
• Republican narrative, as provided by PJ Media. Democrats will soon learn that Title 42 was better than the Biden admin.'s open borders policies set to follow. Despite months to prepare for the upcoming migrant surge, the only plan Biden has come up with is to allow a flood of migrants to cross the border and to release asylum seekers into the country untracked. This could have tragic consequences that Title 42 would have prevented.