The U.S.(Washington Insider Magazine) – Supreme Court (SCOTUS) decided late on Aug. 24 via a 6-3 decision to issue an order that declined to end a Trump-era policy known as “Remain in Mexico” from being reinstated.
The immigration policy requires asylum seekers to remain on the Mexican side of the U.S.-Mexico border while awaiting approval from immigration authorities. SCOTUS had previously paused an order from a lower court on Aug. 20 that would have forced the Biden administration to immediately reimplement the policy. This would have given the administration time to appeal the decision and give the court time for deliberation, CBS news reported.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas had halted the program, known as the Migrant Protections Program (MPP) in June 2021, citing the often dangerous conditions immigrants faced while waiting in Mexico.
“I have determined that MPP does not adequately or sustainably enhance border management in such a way as to justify the program’s extensive operational burdens and other shortfalls,” he said in a memo to the leaders of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency and Citizenship and Immigration Services.
U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, a Trump administration appointee based in Amarillo, Texas, had written the original order on Aug. 13. It had initially given government officials a week to appeal the decision.
At the time, Axios reported that Kacsmaryk had said that the Biden administration has “failed to consider several critical factors” before ending the program. He added this policy would continue until it was “lawfully rescinded,” and the U.S. had the capacity to hold asylum seekers and migrants subject to mandatory detention under U.S. law, according to CBS news.
The Biden administration argued that the policy would continue on in “perpetuity” as the U.S. lacks the space for detention holding. Following Kacmaryk decision to not suspend his ruling, the administration asked the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to intervene. The higher court upheld the ruling on Aug. 19, agreeing with the legal premise of Kacmaryk’s opinion.
This decision forced Biden officials on Aug. 20 to appeal to SCOTUS on the argument that the rushed revival of MPP would “severely disrupt” ongoing operations along the U.S.-Mexican border and that the policy could not be reinstated until gaining consent from the Mexican government, numerous media outlets reported.
The Mexican Foreign Ministry told CBS news that the revival of the Remain-in-Mexico rule would be a “unilateral measure” by the U.S. As of last week, the Foreign Ministry of Mexico said it had yet to receive notification of a policy change. In a statement, the DHS said it regrets that the high court declined to issue a stay. The department added it would continue to challenge the district court’s order, as reported by AP.
According to an internal DHS memo obtained by CBS News, U.S. immigration officials were told late on Aug. 24 to “reimplement” the Remain-in-Mexico policy starting at 12:01 AM on Aug. 25.
