The Biden administration is set to reimplement former President Donald Trump’s “Remain in Mexico” policy after several failed efforts to repeal it, even as the same administration continues its efforts to scrap the policy.
A senior Department of Homeland Security official confirmed this week that the program, which requires migrants seeking asylum in the U.S. to remain in Mexico while their cases make their way through the U.S. court system, is back in place.
DHS and the State Department will coordinate housing for asylum-seekers away from dangerous border cities, the official said. The U.S. will also provide transportation for migrants to and from ports of entry when they need to return to attend court hearings.
Another U.S. official said Mexican authorities “demanded a number of humanitarian improvements” to the program before they agreed to abide by it again, including guarantees that asylum seekers would have access to legal counsel and that their asylum claims would be processed within six months.
“These are improvements we agree with,” the official said, according to the Washington Post.
But even as the Biden administration reinstates “Remain in Mexico,” DHS still plans to end it. Last month, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas issued a 39-page memo saying officials would keep trying to repeal the policy until the courts agree.
“After carefully considering the arguments, evidence, and perspectives presented by those who support re-implementation of [Remain in Mexico], those who support terminating the program, and those who have argued for continuing [Remain in Mexico] in a modified form, I have determined that [Remain in Mexico] should be terminated,” Mayorkas said.
However, the courts have rejected the Biden administration’s arguments against “Remain in Mexico.” In August, U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk ordered DHS to reinstate it, blasting the White House for not fully considering the consequences of its removal. The U.S. Supreme Court later upheld that decision.
