By Ted Hesson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration plans to maintain its goal of accepting 125,000 refugees subsequent yr, based on an inside report back to U.S. lawmakers reviewed by Reuters, signaling a refugee ramp-up will proceed if Kamala Harris wins the White Home.
The Biden administration is on tempo to herald 100,000 folks by the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program in fiscal yr 2024, which ends on Sept. 30, based on the doc, which has not been beforehand reported. If profitable, that may be the very best degree in three a long time.
Immigration is a high voter concern within the run-up to Nov. 5 elections that can pit Harris, a Democrat and Biden’s vice chairman, towards Republican Donald Trump. Trump tremendously curtailed refugee admissions throughout his 2017-2021 presidency and has pledged a wide-ranging immigration crackdown if reelected.
The State Division, the White Home, the Harris marketing campaign and the Trump marketing campaign didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
The U.S. Refugee Admissions Program sometimes is obtainable to folks exterior of their dwelling nations who face persecution based mostly on race, faith, nationality, membership in a selected social group, or political opinion. Candidates should be exterior the U.S. to qualify for the standing.
Biden first aimed for 125,000 refugee admissions in fiscal yr 2022, an bold goal that has remained elusive even after years of stepping up refugee processing.
The Biden administration additionally has elevated refugee entries from Latin America, a part of a method to supply extra authorized pathways within the area amid report ranges of displacement.
Greater than 16,000 refugees from Latin America and the Caribbean have entered the U.S. from Oct. 1, 2023 by July 31, 2024, U.S. State Division figures present.
Within the report back to lawmakers, the U.S. State Division and different companies mentioned the refugee plan “builds on the long, enduring history of American communities providing a warm welcome to those fleeing persecution.”
