Biden streamlines green card issuance process
Biden loosens restrictions for long-term immigrants:
After cracking down on immigrants entering the USA from Mexico, US President Biden is bucking the trend by making it easier for individuals who have lived in the country for ten years and married a US citizen to acquire a Green Card. In a speech at the White House in Washington, D.C., Biden called for understanding from American citizens regarding legal immigration and accused his rival Trump of capitalizing on fear-mongering about immigration.
Affecting approximately 550,000 individuals and 50,000 stepchildren of US citizens, the new rules will apply to those who have been in the US for a decade and married an American citizen before June 17, 2024. The simplified procedure for spousal applications is expected to remove the requirement to leave the country during processing, and applicants will receive a work permit and a three-year temporary residence permit upon initial application, with potential US citizenship afterward. The US government has also eased access to work visas for Dreamers - immigrants who came to the USA as children - if they can show a college degree and a job offer.
Trump brands the policy as a "mass amnesty"
Immigration is a hot topic in the US presidential election. Opponents like former President Trump and the Republicans accuse Biden of being too lenient on illegal immigration. An attempt to significantly tighten immigration laws failed in the US Congress at the end of May.
Biden and the Democrats claim that Trump and the Republicans are obstructing their plans due to their desire to exploit the perceived porosity of the US border for political gain. Trump has a history of harsh anti-immigrant rhetoric, labeling them as a threat to national security. Biden eased restrictions for immigrants at the Mexican border two weeks ago, but his move to streamline procedures for already residing migrants allows him to differentiate himself from Trump's hardline stance.
Trump accused Biden once more of doing nothing to stop the "invasion" by illegal immigrants and instead "granting a mass amnesty." However, Mexico's President Andrés Manuel López Obrador welcomed the measures as a "step forward," while the American Business Immigration Coalition also endorsed the move. "Biden's reform is morally right, economically sensible, and politically smart," said Executive Director Rebecca Shi.
