Biden Raises Refugee Cap To 62,500 After Democratic Blowback

(AP) — President Joe Biden is formally lifting the nation’s
refugee cap to 62,500 this year, weeks after facing bipartisan
blowback for his delay in lifting former President Donald Trump’s
limit of 15,000.

Biden last month moved to expand the eligibility criteria for
resettlements, removing one roadblock to refugees entering the U.S.
put in place by Trump, but he had initially stopped short of
lifting the annual cap, with aides saying they did not believe it
was necessary. But Biden faced sharp pushback for not at least
taking the symbolic step of authorizing more refugees to enter the
U.S. this year and swiftly reversed course.

Biden, in a statement, said the new limit “erases the
historically low number set by the previous administration,” adding
that Trump’s cap “did not reflect America’s values as a nation that
welcomes and supports refugees.”

“It is important to take this action today to remove any
lingering doubt in the minds of refugees around the world who have
suffered so much, and who are anxiously waiting for their new lives
to begin,” Biden added.

Biden said it was a “sad truth” that the U.S. would not meet the
62,500 cap by the end of the fiscal year in September, given the
pandemic and limitations on the country’s resettlement capabilities
— some of which his administration has attributed to the Trump
administration’s policies to restrict immigration. That said, they
maintain Biden remains committed to setting the cap at 125,000 for
the 2022 fiscal year that starts in October, while they were
working to improve U.S. capabilities to process refugees to be able
to accept as many of them as possible under the new cap.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken notified Congress on Feb. 12
of a plan to raise the ceiling on admissions to 62,500, but no
presidential determination followed. In an emergency declaration on
April 16, Biden stated the admission of up to 15,000 refugees set
by Trump this year “remains justified by humanitarian concerns and
is otherwise in the national interest.”

“Failing to issue a new Determination undermines your declared
purpose to reverse your predecessor’s refugee policies,” New Jersey
Democratic Senator Bob Menendez, the chairman of the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee, wrote in a letter to Biden.

The new allocation instituted by Biden added more slots for
refugees from Africa, the Middle East and Central America and ended
Trump’s restrictions on resettlements from Somalia, Syria and
Yemen.

(AP) — President Joe Biden is formally lifting the nation’s
refugee cap to 62,500 this year, weeks after facing bipartisan
blowback for his delay in lifting former President Donald Trump’s
limit of 15,000.

Biden last month moved to expand the eligibility criteria for
resettlements, removing one roadblock to refugees entering the U.S.
put in place by Trump, but he had initially stopped short of
lifting the annual cap, with aides saying they did not believe it
was necessary. But Biden faced sharp pushback for not at least
taking the symbolic step of authorizing more refugees to enter the
U.S. this year and swiftly reversed course.

Biden, in a statement, said the new limit “erases the
historically low number set by the previous administration,” adding
that Trump’s cap “did not reflect America’s values as a nation that
welcomes and supports refugees.”

“It is important to take this action today to remove any
lingering doubt in the minds of refugees around the world who have
suffered so much, and who are anxiously waiting for their new lives
to begin,” Biden added.

Biden said it was a “sad truth” that the U.S. would not meet the
62,500 cap by the end of the fiscal year in September, given the
pandemic and limitations on the country’s resettlement capabilities
— some of which his administration has attributed to the Trump
administration’s policies to restrict immigration. That said, they
maintain Biden remains committed to setting the cap at 125,000 for
the 2022 fiscal year that starts in October, while they were
working to improve U.S. capabilities to process refugees to be able
to accept as many of them as possible under the new cap.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken notified Congress on Feb. 12
of a plan to raise the ceiling on admissions to 62,500, but no
presidential determination followed. In an emergency declaration on
April 16, Biden stated the admission of up to 15,000 refugees set
by Trump this year “remains justified by humanitarian concerns and
is otherwise in the national interest.”

“Failing to issue a new Determination undermines your declared
purpose to reverse your predecessor’s refugee policies,” New Jersey
Democratic Senator Bob Menendez, the chairman of the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee, wrote in a letter to Biden.

The new allocation instituted by Biden added more slots for
refugees from Africa, the Middle East and Central America and ended
Trump’s restrictions on resettlements from Somalia, Syria and
Yemen.