WASHINGTON – US lawmakers, both Republican and Democrat, pressed Democratic President Joe Biden on Sunday to take action to manage an expected surge of asylum seekers at the US southern border as age-old restrictions COVID end this week.
US border cities are bracing for a wave of asylum seekers after a US judge in November ruled to strike down a policy enacted by former President Donald Trump’s administration that has allowed immigration authorities to quickly send asylum seekers asylum back to Mexico and other countries.
The policy, known as Title 42, will end on December 21, and thousands of asylum seekers have been lining up at the US-Mexico border ahead of the easing of restrictions.
The west Texas border city of El Paso declared a state of emergency on Saturday, citing the hundreds of immigrants sleeping on the streets in freezing temperatures and the thousands who are detained each day.
“This is a very serious situation,” Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales of Texas told CBS’s “Face the Nation.”
Gonzales urged Biden to reinvigorate previous policies that tried to speed up asylum reviews and expedite deportations.
Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar, who also represents Texas, urged Biden to enact a policy requiring people to apply for asylum only at official border crossings.
“And if they don’t go that route, they have to go back,” Cuellar told “Face the Nation.”