This summary was featured in Documented’s Early Arrival newsletter. You can subscribe to receive it in your inbox three times per week here.
More than 100,000 employment-based green cards are remaining for the Biden administration to distribute before the 2021 fiscal year ends Sept. 30. Despite President Joe Biden’s pro-immigration rhetoric, the administration has shown no sign that it’s preparing to give out the expiring green cards, causing frustration among advocates. About 90% of the immigrants who would be eligible for these green cards are Indian nationals, many of whom are currently on temporary work visas. Advocates are urging U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to fast-track applications, which would make use of green cards unclaimed during the pandemic and Trump administration. The Hill
In other federal immigration news…
DHS Allows Afghans Temporary Entry
To help speed up the process of evacuating tens of thousands of Afghan refugees, the Biden administration is granting some temporary admission. According to a memo from Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to U.S. Customs and Border Protection Acting Commissioner Troy Miller, Mayorkas instructed CBP to “parole” specific evacuees on a case-by-case basis into the U.S. This will allow Afghan nationals who were a part of Operation Allies Refuge to remain in the U.S. for two years with security checks. Still, this parole process raises legal questions for the future of many Afghans relocated in the U.S. CNN
GOP Breach Widens While More Afghan Refugees Come to U.S.
As the U.S. rushes to evacuate Americans and allies from Afghanistan, some Republicans are beginning to question why the U.S. should take in Afghan refugees who worked with the U.S. When the Taliban started taking over the country, former President Donald Trump put out a statement saying “civilians and others who have been good to our Country … should be allowed to seek refuge.” But in more recent days, he began warning of the alleged dangers of those trying to leave Afghanistan. The Biden administration emphasized that every person cleared to come to the U.S. is being investigated by officials. Yet Republicans demand that Americans should be prioritized for evacuations first. The Associated Press
