Appeals court temporarily blocks key ‘Remain-in-Mexico’ policy
Published 7 mins ago
Appeals court temporarily blocks key ‘Remain-in-Mexico’ policy
By Adam Shaw | Fox News
US released over 375,000 illegal immigrants in 2019 who claimed to be part of family units
Former DHS Special Agent Timothy Ballard says criminal organizations are scheming their way into the United States by posing as family units.
A federal appeals court on Friday slapped a temporary halt on the Remain-in-Mexico policy -- one of the most effective Trump administration policies in halting last year’s crisis at the southern border.
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco ruled in a 2-1 vote to put a hold on the policy -- formally known as the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP).
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION EXPANDS 'REMAIN-IN-MEXICO' PROGRAM AT KEY BORDER CROSSINGS
The policy, which was established in January expanded over the summer amid greater cooperation with Mexico, returns migrants to Mexico as they await their hearings, with courtrooms set up at key border points.
The policy ends the process known as “catch-and-release” by which migrants were released into the interior, sometimes for years, until their cases were processed. It was identified as a key “pull factor” in why migrants were flooding the border.
Since MPP was expanded, there has been a dramatic drop in migrants coming to the border.
Officials have repeatedly said the policy, along with other international agreements with Central American countries, has been a significant factor in that reduction.
“The importance of MPP can’t be stated enough, it is what’s allowed us to take control of the crisis that we saw in April and May. The idea is to make sure we process individuals in a timely manner but make sure they wait south of the border,” he told Fox News in November.
Wolf warned then that a ruling by the Ninth Circuit could have a dire effect on the U.S. effort to regain control of its southern border.
“So you get an adverse ruling on MPP and it’s going to make the job of the men and women of Border Patrol as well as [Customs and Border Protection] and [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] ... very difficult for them, so it really can’t be overstated how much the program means to the department in controlling the crisis,” he said.
Groups advocating for a tough line on illegal immigration reacted to the ruling by noting the court’s traditional liberal bent -- although President Trump has started to tilt the balance of the bench.
“The Ninth Circuit has repeatedly engaged in torturous interpretations of immigration law in order to elevate the interests of foreign nationals over those of U.S. citizens,” RJ Hauman, government relations director at the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), told Fox News Friday.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/app...-mexico-policy
