Supreme Court Backs Reinstatement of Trump-Era “Remain in Mexico” Policy

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Former US President Donald Trump walks through onto the stage in front of a crowd. November 5, 2020. Washington, DC, Editorial credit: Christos S / Shutterstock.com, licensed.
The Trump-era policy mandates that foreign nationals requesting asylum at the U.S. southern border are required to stay in Mexico while awaiting their hearing in a U.S. court to determine their eligibility; previously, asylum-seekers were allowed to enter the country and remain there until their court date. Editorial credit: Christos S / Shutterstock.com, licensed.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled not to block a lower court order requiring the immediate reinstatement by the Biden Administration of an immigration policy, originally instituted by former President Donald Trump in 2019, known as “Remain in Mexico.”

The policy mandates that foreign nationals requesting asylum at the U.S. southern border are required to stay in Mexico while awaiting their hearing in a U.S. court to determine their eligibility; previously, asylum-seekers were allowed to enter the country and remain there until their court date.

President Joe Biden suspended the program shortly after entering office. In June, he formally ended it.

However, a Texas federal judge had ruled last week that the “Remain in Mexico” policy must be reinstated after Missouri and Texas sued the Biden Administration – who stated that the policy was illegally ended and harmed border states due to the subsequent migrant crisis – a decision that was then upheld by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Justices Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor, Stephen Breyer – three of the more liberal-leaning on the Court – were the only ones to vote against reinstatement of the policy on Tuesday.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was critical of the decision, saying in a statement that while the agency will comply with the Supreme Court’s ruling, they also intend to file an appeal.

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