Biden Bid to Streamline Asylum Backlog Slammed By Immigration Advocates, Opponents as Unworkable

President Biden’s latest bid to streamline the asylum process for migrants arriving in the US has been slammed as unworkable by both pro-immigration lawyers and border enforcement officials — the latest setback for the White House on an issue that has vexed Biden since taking office last year.

The pilot program, which has been trialed since May, lets asylum officers — rather than immigration judges — determine whether a migrant has a case to stay in America.

The program aims to shrink the wait time for asylum decisions from years to as little as 90 days.

However, advocates complain that doesn’t leave enough time for applicants to hire a lawyer and build their case, while critics note that an adverse decision can be appealed, leaving applicants stuck in backlogged immigration courts that are almost two million cases behind.

“This program is going to fail no matter what because even if an asylum officer finds that they don’t have a claim to asylum, then the people get to appeal it,” Brandon Judd, President of the National Border Patrol Council, told The Post.

James Keivom

“Why are we even setting up this step? Now, all we’re doing is prolonging the process because every single person is going to appeal it. This is a stupid rule. It makes absolutely no sense,” Judd added.

Data from the pilot program shows that of the 100 asylum seekers who have gone through the shorter process, 24 have been granted asylum. That tracks closely with the regular asylum process, in which the denial rate is 73% nationwide, according to Linh Tran Flores, who practices immigration law in Round Rock, Texas.

Flores told The Post although there are several different asylum tracks, in general, waiting times for a final decision are “definitely years.”

“I’ve had clients where we had an interview scheduled and prepped for trial [then] three days before the hearing, we were told it’s rescheduled,” she recalled.

The pilot program is currently only in use at two locations, the South Texas Detention Complex in Pearsall, and a Houston immigration center. --->READ MORE HERE

If you like what you see, please "Like" and/or Follow us on FACEBOOK here, GETTR here, and TWITTER here.