VOA慢速英语2021--拜登对移民政策做了有限的修改

Biden Has Made Limited Changes to Immigration Policy

As a presidential candidate, Joe Biden criticized the administration of then-president Donald Trump² for its immigration policies. Biden also promised to pass reforms to permit more asylum³-seekers and refugees.

However, Biden's immigration policies in 2021 have not changed too much from those of the earlier administration. The biggest change was that Biden stopped building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The Biden administration has kept enforcing what is called Title 42. That law requires the quick removal of migrants as a public health concern. Biden also tried to change a policy that required asylum-seekers at the southern border to stay in Mexico while waiting for U.S. immigration court dates. But a federal court ruled that the law, called the Migrant Protection Protocols⁴ (MPP), must stay in place.

Immigrant supporters say Biden has made the U.S immigration system kinder. But they credit him with little else.

Fernando Garcia is director of the Border Network for Human Rights. He told VOA that "we can still see some of the kind of legacy⁵ of Trump at the border. That has not changed and we're disappointed that that is still happening."

US-Mexico border and asylum seekers

In addition to stopping border wall construction Biden ordered an end to the stay-in-Mexico policy soon after entering office.

Texas, a U.S. state bordering Mexico, took legal action against the Biden administration to keep the policy. In August, a federal judge ordered the policy to remain in place.

The Biden administration is appealing the ruling. But the policy was restarted on December 6 after Mexico agreed to receive returned migrants.

The Biden administration has sought to end the MPP policy, but it has observed Title 42 rules related to public health.

Since March 20, 2020, thousands of migrants seeking to apply for asylum in the United States have been sent back to their home countries. But there have been some changes to Title 42 under Biden to permit unaccompanied children and families with young children to stay.

Refugees

Former President Trump reduced the number of refugees permitted in the U.S. from 85,000 to 15,000.

Biden at first kept the refugee limit at 15,000, the lowest in modern U.S. history. After many Democrats⁶ criticized the decision, the administration raised the limit to 62,500. From October 2020 to the end of September, the U.S. has admitted just 11,411 refugees.

The administration has since raised the 2022 refugee limit to 125,000. But the administration has said the "goal [of 125,000 admissions] will be hard to hit."

Enforcement goals

Researchers say little has changed in federal border enforcement.

Jessica Bolter is an expert with the Migration¹ Policy Institute. She said the Biden administration is centered on removing undocumented immigrants that are a threat to public safety. During the Trump administration, any undocumented immigrant living in the U.S. could be removed.

Bolter said the change has made most immigrants who do not have legal papers to be living in the U.S. less likely to be removed.

The Biden administration has worked to prevent Immigration Customs and Enforcement officers from making arrests at courthouses. Biden has also limited detentions⁷ of pregnant women.

Legal immigration

After more than a year of closures, U.S. embassies and consulates⁸ around the world have reopened for visa processing. However, services remain limited because of the pandemic.

In November, the U.S. State Department announced that more than 460,000 people are awaiting required meetings with officials. There is already a long list of those applying to live in the U.S. legally.

Immigration legislation slowed

On his first day in office, President Biden released an immigration reform bill: the U.S. Citizenship⁹ Act of 2021. It includes an eight-year path to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S.

The bill has never been voted on by either the U.S. House or Senate. It is not expected to pass.

Since the Democratic Party controls the presidency¹⁰ and Congress, the inability to reform America's immigration system is hard to accept for immigration activists¹¹.

"Our hope, our demand and our expectation were that this new administration was bringing a new air in regard to immigrants and immigration policy with a more humane¹² approach to immigration, and we did believe that," Garcia, from Border Network for Human Rights, told VOA.

Words in This Story

legacy — n. something that comes from someone in the past that affects the present

construction –n. the process of building something

unaccompanied — adj. alone; without someone else

undocumented — adj. not having the official documents that are needed to enter, live in, or work in a country legally

apply— v. to formally ask for a position or privilege such as admission to a school, a job or to legally live in a country

humane— adj. kind or gentle to others

1 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

2 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

3 asylum   

n.避难所，庇护所，避难

参考例句：

• The people ask for political asylum.人们请求政治避难。
• Having sought asylum in the West for many years,they were eventually granted it.他们最终获得了在西方寻求多年的避难权。

4 protocols   

n.礼仪( protocol的名词复数 )；（外交条约的）草案；（数据传递的）协议；科学实验报告（或计划）

参考例句：

• There are also protocols on the testing of nuclear weapons. 也有关于核武器试验的协议。 来自辞典例句
• Hardware components and software design of network transport protocols are separately introduced. 介绍系统硬件组成及网络传输协议的软件设计。 来自互联网

5 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

6 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 detentions   

拘留( detention的名词复数 )； 扣押； 监禁； 放学后留校

参考例句：

• Teachers may assign detention tasks as they wish and some detentions have been actually dangerous. 老师可能随心所欲指派关禁闭的形式，有些禁闭事实上很危险。
• Intimidation, beatings and administrative detentions are often enough to prevent them from trying again. 恐吓，拷打和行政拘留足以阻止请愿者二次进京的脚步。

8 consulates   

n.领事馆( consulate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Consulates General of The People's Republic at Los Angeles. 中华人民共和国驻洛杉矶总领事馆。 来自互联网
• The country's embassies, consulates and other diplomatic missions stationed in other countries. （七）家驻外使馆、馆和其他外交代表机构。 来自互联网

9 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

10 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

11 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 humane   

adj.人道的，富有同情心的

参考例句：

• Is it humane to kill animals for food?宰杀牲畜来吃合乎人道吗？
• Their aim is for a more just and humane society.他们的目标是建立一个更加公正、博爱的社会。