US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that the US Supreme Court will not rule until June on a law that would allow US authorities to expedite migrants caught at the Mexican border.
The United States Supreme Court agreed on the same day to keep the controversial Title 42, which has been implemented by the Donald Trump administration since March 2020, in effect. It filed last week, on December 21st.
But this week, the Supreme Court upheld, by a vote of 5-4, a request by a group of state Republican plaintiffs to put a hold on overturning the emergency order while it considers whether they can step in to challenge the ruling.
The states said lifting the law could lead to an increase in border crossings, which are already at record levels. US Border Patrol agents caught 2.2 million immigrants at the southwest border in the 2022 fiscal year, which ended Sept. 30. About half of the detainees were quickly transferred under Title 42.
President Biden said in a press conference at the White House that the Supreme Court will not make a decision in this regard until next June.
“In the meantime, we have to implement it. But I think it’s something that should have been done,” the president declared.
White House press secretary Karen Jean-Pierre said Tuesday that the Biden administration is moving forward with preparations to manage the border in a safe, orderly, and humane way “when Title 42 finally lifts, and we will continue to expand legal avenues for immigration.”
“Title 42 is a public health measure, not an immigration measure, and should not be extended indefinitely,” the spokeswoman said.
[Con información de Reuters y AP]
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