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President Joe Biden virtually met with Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador on Monday. The two issued a joint declaration confirming they will cooperate on migrant issues, including developing more jobs in southern Mexico and Central America. They also discussed the economy, climate change and the pandemic, according to a White House readout. But it wasn’t clear if Biden secured Obrador’s support in curbing a surge of migration at the border. A recent wave of unaccompanied minors arriving at the border has put pressure on the Biden administration as it promises to close immigration jails. The Washington Post
In other federal immigration news…
Refugees Removed From Flights As They Wait for Biden to Increase Cap
Hundreds of refugees who were approved to come to the U.S. are now being taken off of flights, according to resettlement agencies who work with refugees. Biden promised to dramatically increase the number of refugees who could come to the U.S. But despite promising three weeks ago to raise the refugee cap to 62,000 for this year, he has still not signed the agreement. About 60 refugees were removed from their flights last week while over 200 refugees had to postpone their flights this week. CNN Politics
Separated Families Allowed to Remain in U.S.
The White House announced that the Biden administration plans on allowing families separated by the Trump administration to remain in the U.S. About 2,800 families were separated in 2018. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who is also the head of the reunification task force, said Monday that 105 families have been reunited under Biden. Still, about 550 children were still not in communication with their parents as of this week. Immigration advocates have urged the Biden administration to also compensate those who were harmed under the Trump administration. The Hill
Mayorkas Backs Up Biden’s Handling of Migrant Children
Mayorkas went on to defend how the Biden administration has been handling unaccompanied migrant children arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border. “I learned that we did not have the facilities available or equipped to administer the humanitarian laws that our Congress passed years ago,” he said. “We did not have the personnel, policies, procedures or training to administer those laws. Quite frankly, the entire system was gutted.” Mayorkas claimed that the Biden administration is not treating migrants the way the Trump administration did. Meanwhile Biden has still not ended Trump’s pandemic protocol that allows border agents to rapidly expel immigrants. ABC News
