Report: US Removed Over 350K Migrants From Legal System

Above: Asylum seekers walk back into Mexico after their immigration court hearing on December 09, 2019 in Brownsville, Texas, across the river from the border town of Matamoros, Mexico. Image copyright: John Moore/Staff/Getty Images News via Getty Images

The Facts

  • Syracuse University's Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) reports the US government has closed over 350K asylum applications since 2022 — meaning the migrants were no longer required to check in with authorities.

  • According to the report, the administration took these asylum applications out of the legal system because the migrants had no criminal record and were not deemed a threat to the country.


The Spin

Democratic narrative

The border problem is nearly impossible to solve, especially when Republicans are blocking comprehensive, bipartisan legislation just to make Pres. Biden look bad. This report shows just how overwhelmed the immigration system is, but at least Biden is implementing executive orders to relieve some of the pressure.

Republican narrative

As the election looms, Biden is frantically, and farcically, attempting to show the country he's tough on illegal immigration. But the problem is that throughout his term in office, he's shown the opposite, including what this report shows. The president continues making the country less safe and he must be defeated in November.

Progressive narrative

A Democratic president should be helping, not hurting, those who seek a better life in America, but instead, Biden is playing politics and returning the country to the day of ineffective, racist border policies prior to the election. Biden should be pouring money into streamlining the application process instead of toughening restrictions on vulnerable immigrants seeking asylum.


Metaculus Prediction


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