Asylum impasse awaits new Congress
Dems, GOP still far apart on how to deal with caravan migrants
The continuing impasse over migrants seeking asylum in America is likely to carry over to the incoming Congress.
The 2018 midterm elections have done little to alter the basic ideological battle lines between Republicans seeking a more restrictive system of screening those claiming a need for protection from elsewhere and Democrats wanting more humane treatment of prospective immigrants.
President Donald Trump and GOP lawmakers have a series of ideas to clamp down on asylum, but they need at least some Democratic support in the Senate, making near-term passage unlikely.
Democrats, meanwhile, would like to expand processing of asylum requests, seemingly another nonstarter with Trump.
Migrant caravans from Central America this year have made the asylum issue part of the national
“I would be very surprised if there were any positive changes in the asylum law in this lame-duck Congress.” David Leopold Former president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association
conversation.
Trump is warning of a partial government shutdown this week if he doesn’t get at least $5 billion for his long-promised border wall with Mexico. Last week, he said asylum seekers should wait in Mexico while their claims are processed.
“The focus has really been on Trump’s attempt to get funding for his wall,” said David Leopold, the former president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. “I would be very surprised if there were any positive changes in the asylum law in this lameduck Congress.”
There may be more interest among Democrats on the issue in January after they take control of the House of Representatives, he said.
On Jan. 3, Democrats will run the House while the Senate becomes more Republican. It is a mix that could thwart efforts on nearly every major issue in D.C., including asylum changes. 2020 presidential politics also could contribute to gridlock in the new Congress.
The preferences among Arizona’s congressional delegation seem to fall along the usual party lines.
As U.S. Rep. Martha McSally, R-Ariz., is set to end her tenure in the House, she remains committed to legislation she helped shape that failed earlier this year that would have affected border security and asylum.
“Unfortunately, her bill did not get enough votes in the House but she remains committed to finding solutions on these important issues,” said Pace McMullan, McSally’s legislative director. “She also supports the administration’s proposal to require asylum seekers to remain in Mexico while their claims move through U.S. immigration courts and is advocating for a deal to be reached soon to provide robust resources for border security.”
Rep. Raúl Grijalva, D-Ariz., wants a hiring binge to process asylum cases more quickly. But he thinks Trump’s push for wall funding will, at least for now, prevent action on asylum reforms.
“I think what has gotten convoluted by the administration is the issue of immigration and the issue of asylum. They’re two different things,” said Grijalva, whose district, like McSally’s, spans part of the Arizona-Mexico border.
Funding for the wall “has become the big issue. It doesn’t deal with the reality that we’re seeing in San Ysidro and other ports of entry and that is the migrants wanting to apply for asylum and refugee status,” he said.
Grijalva urged hiring more people to process the requests, from screening officers to more immigration judges. That’s part of a longstanding request Grijalva has had for increased staffing at the border ports of entry.
“Without narrowing the scope of any protections or weakening due process, we’re expediting, which is what we’re not able to do,” he said of his proposals. “These ports of entry are understaffed and the courts are only processing about 60 people per day when thousands we’re seeing in San Ysidro are waiting to make that lawful request.”
Meanwhile, thousands of migrants, mainly from Central America, remain huddled in makeshift camps along the Mexican border. The White House has said many in the caravan are criminals, though it has offered little evidence to support the claim.
Rep.-elect Ann Kirkpatrick, the Democrat elected to replace McSally in January, said the asylum issue is among those she hopes will get attention in the new Congress.
“We’ve got to have common-sense solutions,” she said, noting the spectacle of children of asylum-seekers locked in detention cells this summer while their cases were processed.
“It’s clear to me the American people are not happy with this policy because the Democrats just picked up the most seats they’ve picked up since Watergate,” Kirkpatrick said. “I wish the president would listen to the people. Instead, he’s just doubling down on his cruel policy. These people aren’t criminals. They have a legal right to asylum.”
U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., however, underscores the gulf between the parties.
Biggs, who represents a conservative congressional district southeast of Phoenix, cast efforts to cross into the U.S. by some in the caravan last week as an “invasion.”
“The attack on our southern border by a mob attempting to enter our country illegally, in part to force us to change our laws and policies, is nothing short of an invasion,” he wrote in an op-ed for Fox News. “Congressional inattention and inaction, together with activist judges and a lack of preparation by the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Border Patrol Commissioner, has created a perfect storm. The president is left with few options other than to close our border and negotiate with Mexico for help in stemming the tide.”