Blog Archives - THIS WEEK IN IMMIGRATION

June 29, 2020 Legislative Preview

6/29/2020

Defense Authorization Bills in House and Senate Highlight Possible Immigration Action in Congress
During the Week Ahead

Monday, June 29, 2020

The full Senate's and the full House Committee on Armed Services' consideration of their respective versions of the Fiscal year 2021 National Defense Authorization Act highlights the possible action on immigration in Congress during the week beginning June 29, 2020.

While neither the full Senate's or the House Committee's version of the annual defense authorization bill contained any contentious immigration- or refugee-related provisions at the time of this writing, both bills could become a target for contentious immigration-related amendments during their consideration in their respective bodies.

Other action occurring in committees could tangentially address the subjects of immigration or immigrants. But otherwise, a light week on immigration is in store for Congress during the week ahead.

The coming week's light activity belies a busy period to come.

As far as the week beginning June 29 is concerned, from the perspective of those interested in immigration, refugee, homeland security, or human trafficking policy, the week's schedule includes three hearings or briefings (all occurring in the House); one markup session (occurring in the House); and one floor action (occurring in the Senate) that either will or could touch on one or more of those subjects.

Court Rulings Place Immigration in Spotlight

6/28/2020

Five Recent Court Rulings on Immigration Place the Subject in the Judicial Spotlight

Sunday, June 28, 2020

For nearly two years, immigration stakeholders and policymakers awaited action in the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) on the legality of the Trump Administration's September 2017 attempt to end the popular Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA). As late June of 2020 approached, the pro-immigrant advocacy community braced itself for what it thought would certainly be a decision affirming the Administration's authority to rescind DACA. However, in a totally unexpected decision, on Thursday, June 18, 2020, SCOTUS ruled that the Administration improperly moved to rescind DACA, saving, for now at least, the hundreds of thousands of young people brought to the United States illegally while they were children.

The long-awaited SCOTUS DACA decision was just one of five consequential decisions issued by SCOTUS and lower federal courts on immigration matters in recent days.

USCIS Warns of Massive Furloughs

6/28/2020

Immigration Services Agency Warns of Massive
Furloughs as it Seeks a $1.2 BILLION Infusion
of Supplemental Funds for
Fiscal Year 2020

Sunday, June 28, 2020

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) component of the Department of Homeland Security is seeking $1.2 BILLION in supplemental fiscal year 2020 funding, warning that unless it receives the funds by August of 2020, it will have to furlough two-thirds of its 20,000 employees, a number totaling 13,400 persons. The agency asserts that it would "would repay these funds by adding a 10% surcharge to applications."

The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) formally informed Congress of the situation in a June 19, 2020, letter to Congress that was a follow-up to in-person briefings it had conducted a month earlier.

Internal USCIS documents indicate that $571.2 MILLION of the request would support operations for the remainder of the fiscal year and $650 MILLION would be used to provide carryover funds to ensure that sufficient resources are available at the start of the next fiscal year. Of the $571.2 million USCIS is requesting for the current fiscal year, $373.4 MILLION would be used for payroll and $197.8 million for other expenses including rent, FBI name checks and fingerprinting, and information technology contracts.

June 28, 2020, Sunday Shows Wrap-Up

6/28/2020

No Discussions about Immigration and Xenophobia Occur on This Weekend's Major Sunday
Morning Public Affairs Programs

Sunday, June 28, 2020

For much of the last four months, three story lines have dominated the news: the health and economic consequences brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic; the social and political movements spawned by the deaths of unarmed African Americans during encounters with law enforcement officers; and the political free fall that President Trump and his party find themselves in as election day 2020 approaches., This has left little room for discussions on the five top Sunday public affairs news programs about immigration, refugees, xenophobia, or other issues.

While last week's decision by the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) provided an opening for talk about immigration during the June 28, 2020, editions of those programs., this week returned to form, with the programs once again being exclusively composed of discussions about the those three dominating stories.

A summary of the discussions that took place during the June 28, 2020, Sunday morning public affairs programs, follows:

June 28, 2020 Sunday Shows Preview

6/27/2020

Discussions about Immigration Unlikely on This
Weekend's Sunday Morning
Public Affairs Programs

Saturday, June 27, 2020

Now that the Supreme Court of the United States has issued its decision on the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program (DACA), it seems likely that the issues of immigration, refugees, and xenophobia will take a back seat to other issues during the June 28, 2020, editions. of the five most prominent Sunday morning public affairs programs.

Notwithstanding the Supreme Court's DACA action, however, three courts over the last week have issued significant rulings on the Trump Administration's immigration policies:

On Thursday, June 25, 2020, the Supreme Court affirmed the constitutionality of a law that limits the role federal courts may play in reviewing summary determinations of whether asylum seekers face a credible fear of persecution if they are returned to their home countries.

On Friday, June 26, the Federal District Court in Central California ordered the Trump Administration to release children in family detention due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

And also on Friday, a panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the Trump Administration's redirection of funds appropriated for military construction in order to fund the construction of his proposed wall along the U.S. border with Mexico was unconstitutional.

These rulings could provide fodder for discussions about immigration on the coming weekend's programs.

A sneak peek at the guest lists for the upcoming June 28, 2020, editions of each of the five major broadcast and cable Sunday public affairs programs appears after the jump, along with previews of the likely or possible discussions on those programs about immigration and, refugees.

Senate Passes Bill to Sanction Chinese Over Hong Kong

6/26/2020

Senate Passes Toomey-Van Hollen Bill to Sanction Chinese Authorities Over Hong Kong

Friday, June 26, 2020

Senators Pat Toomey (R-PA) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)

The U.S. Senate has passed legislation containing provisions that would deny or cancel visas to businessmen from China involved in persecuting freedom of expression in Hong Kong. The Senate acted on Thursday, June 26, 2020, in connection with S. 3798, the “Hong Kong Autonomy Act”, passing the measure by unanimous consent.

As passed by the Senate, S. 3798 would impose sanctions on foreign individuals and entities that materially contribute to China's failure to preserve Hong Kong's autonomy. Introduced in the Senate by Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA) and cosponsored by Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), the bill permits the President to waive or terminate the imposition of sanctions under this bill. However, Congress would be permitted to override such a waiver or termination by passing a joint resolution of disapproval.

House Passes Policing Reform Bill

6/25/2020

House Passes Policing Reform Legislation Containing Several Provisions Relevant to
Immigration Enforcement

Thursday, June 25, 2020

Rep Karen Bass (D-CA) and Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC)

The full U.S. House of Representatives has passed a broad measure aimed at reforming the way federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies engage communities of color. The House acted on Thursday, June 25, 2020, in connection with H.R. 7120, the "George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2020", approving the measure by a bipartisan vote of 236-181, with all participating Democrats and three of the chamber's 184 participating Republicans voting in favor of the bill. An uncertain fate awaits Thursday's House action, however. One day earlier, the Senate rejected an attempt to take up a competing bill that had been written by Senate Republicans. And the White House has signaled that President Trump would veto H.R. 7120 if it was presented to him.

Introduced by Congressional Black Caucus Chair Karen Bass (D-CA) and cosponsored by 230 of the 233 sitting House Democrats, the measure is a reaction to the deaths over the last several weeks of George Floyd and Rayshard Brooks at the hands of police officers in Minneapolis, Minnesota and Atlanta, Georgia, and the widespread protests and civil unrest that those killings have spawned.

The House Committee on Judiciary had acted on the measure a week earlier, approving it on Thursday, June 18, 2020, by a party-line vote of 24-14. The committee reported the bill to the full House one day later with a written report.

While the measure has few explicit references to immigrants, it is believed that its provisions relating to federal law enforcement agencies and officers would apply to federal immigration authorities, and the measure deals with racial profiling at both the federal and local levels.

Administration Extends and Expands Suspension of Most Immigration

6/23/2020

Trump Administration Extends and Expands General Suspension of Immigration Through
the End of 2020

Tuesday, June 23, 2020

Citing the economic collapse caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the White House has extended through the end of 2020 restrictions on immigration that it first imposed earlier this year, expanding them to also include foreign workers that often are hired by high technology companies and other employers. The announcement, implemented in a June 22, 2020, presidential proclamation, continues the suspension of most immigration to the United States that was first announced in an April 22, 2020 presidential proclamation. However, it expands the previously announced suspension so that it also includes workers on H-1B visas, which are most often used for employing foreign nationals in the technology sector, but also in academia and health care.

The restrictions contained in Monday's proclamation are the latest in a series of steps that the Administration has taken to halt most forms of immigration to the United States. The Administration also has virtually stopped admitting refugees to he country, blocked the entry of unaccompanied alien children, and moved to make if much more difficult for person seeking asylum to apply for and receive that form of relief.

June 22, 2020, Legislative Preview

6/22/2020

Dueling House and Senate Policing Bills Highlight the Congressional Agenda During the Week Ahead

Monday, June 22, 2020

Now that the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) has finally issued its long-awaited ruling on the legality of the Trump Administration's efforts to rescind the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, immigration policymakers and stakeholders have slowly begun to turn their attention back to the more mundane aspects of immigration law and policymaking in Washington, such as poring through and examining the contents of appropriations and authorization bills and writing questions to be asked by legislators during tedious oversight hearings.

June 21, 2020, Sunday Shows Wrap-Up

6/21/2020

Discussions about Immigration and Xenophobia Occur on All Five of This Weekend's Major Sunday
Morning Public Affairs Programs

Sunday, June 21, 2020

Click the Play Button, above, to see excerpts of instances in which the subjects of immigration or xenophobia were discussed during the June 21, 2020, Sunday public affairs programs.

News coverage of the events surrounding the killing of George Floyd and Rayshard Brooks at the hands of police officers in Minneapolis, Minnesota and Atlanta, Georgia, and the widespread protests and civil unrest that those killings spawned, have continued to dominate news coverage on the cable news networks and in newspapers across the country. Notwithstanding that, however, because of last Thursday's decision of the Supreme Court of the United States that temporarily blocked the Trump Administration from rescinding the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program (DACA), there was plenty of talk about immigration and xenophobia during the June 21, 2020, editions. of the five most prominent Sunday morning public affairs programs.

Among those discussing, mentioning, or alluding to immigration, immigrants, or xenophobia during the programs this week were Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf, ABC News's Cecilia Vega, Trump campaign Aide Mercedes Schlapp, Republican strategist Al Cardenas, and Trump economic advisor Peter Navarro.

A summary of the discussions that took place during the June 21, 2020, Sunday morning public affairs programs, along with a link to video of those discussions, follows: