Biden does a U-turn and WILL lift the 15,000 refugee cap by May 15 after Squad members including AOC and Ilhan Omar said he was 'upholding Trump's xenophobic and racist policies'
The White House reversed itself on Friday and said Joe Biden would raise the refugee cap by May 15 after allies and progressives blasted the president for keeping it at the historically low rate of 15,000 set by Donald Trump.
After liberals like Democratic Reps. Ilhan Omar and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, along with staunch allies like Senator Dick Durbin, criticized the president, White House press secretary Jen Psaki issued a statement, arguing Biden's executive order 'has been the subject of some confusion.'
She said after consulting with advisers, the president realized the US could not accept 62,500 refugees - his original goal - and she blamed the Trump administration for 'the decimated refugee admissions program we inherited.'
'For the past few weeks, he has been consulting with his advisors to determine what number of refugees could realistically be admitted to the United States between now and October 1. Given the decimated refugee admissions program we inherited, and burdens on the Office of Refugee Resettlement, his initial goal of 62,500 seems unlikely,' Psaki said.
She said the cap would be increased for the remainder of the fiscal year and that number would be released by May 15.
'We expect the President to set a final, increased refugee cap for the remainder of this fiscal year by May 15,' Psaki said.
The White House reversed itself on Friday and said Joe Biden would raise the refugee cap by May 15 after allies and progressives blasted the president for keeping it at the historically low rate of 15,000 set by Donald Trump
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said President Biden's executive order on refugees 'has been the subject of some confusion' as she put out a statement on matter after Dem outrage
Friday's announcement that Biden signed an executive order keeping the refugee cap at 15,000 - after promising during his campaign and presidency to raise it - sent shockwaves through Democrats, who had wanted Biden to move swiftly to reverse the policies of Trump, who had set the 15,000 cap as a way to limit immigration.
Omar, who fled with her family from Somalia when she was young and spent four years in a Kenya refugee camp, criticized Biden for his decision.
'As a refugee, I know finding a home is a matter of life or death for children around the world. It is shameful that @POTUS is reneging on a key promise to welcome refugees,' she wrote on Twitter.
'There are simply no excuses for today’s disgraceful decision. It goes directly against our values and risks the lives of little boys and girls huddled in refugee camps around the world. I know, because I was one,' she noted.
Omar was a part of a group of Democratic lawmakers, who, earlier on Friday renewed appeals for Biden to raise the cap.
Ocasio-Cortez slammed Biden for upholding 'the xenophobic and racist policies of the Trump' era.
'Completely and utterly unacceptable,' she tweeted. 'Biden promised to welcome immigrants, and people voted for him based on that promise. Upholding the xenophobic and racist policies of the Trump admin, incl the historically low + plummeted refugee cap, is flat out wrong. Keep your promise.'
And Democratic Rep. Pramila Jayapal, the head of the Progressive Caucus, echoed her words.
'It is simply unacceptable and unconscionable that the Biden Administration is not immediately repealing Donald Trump’s harmful, xenophobic, and racist refugee cap,' Jayapal said in a statement.
Durbin, a close White House ally, wrote on Twitter: 'Say it ain’t so, President Joe. This is unacceptable.'
'Refugees wait years for their chance and go through extensive vetting—35,000 are ready today. I urge the Biden Administration to reconsider this decision and stick to their promise of increasing refugee admissions,' he added.
Liberals, including Democratic Reps. Ilhan Omar (left) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (right), immediately criticized Biden's decision
In February, Biden committed to raising the cap. Secretary of State Antony Blinken notified Congress on Feb. 12 that the administration planned to allow up to 62,500 refugees to enter the country in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30.
But, on Friday, it was announced the cap would stay in place. The White House had been asked repeatedly in recent days when Biden planned to raise it.
Biden's decision to delay issuing the revised refugee cap for this year appeared tied to concerns over the optics of admitting more refugees amid rising levels of migrants arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border in recent months, and to not wanting to look 'too open' or 'soft,' another U.S. official with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said the administration is committed to rebuilding the refugee program and building back up the cap.
'America needs to rebuild our refugee resettlement program,' he wrote on Twitter. 'We will use all 15,000 slots under the new Determination and work with Congress on increasing admissions and building back to the numbers to which we’ve committed.'
And Psaki argued Biden's order lifts restrictions put in place by Trump on where refugees can come from.
'This step lifts the restrictions put in place by prior Administration on where refugees can come from. We need to rebuild resettlement program and we are committed to continuing to increase refugee numbers,' she tweeted.
Under an emergency presidential determination signed by Biden, the United States will offer refugee status to a wider part of the world than had been allowed by Trump.
The United States would use all 15,000 slots under the Biden order and that officials were prepared to consult with Congress should there be a need to increase the number of admissions to address unforeseen emergencies.
Under Biden's new plan, the 15,000 slots would be allocated this way:
- 7,000 for Africa
- 1,000 for East Asia
- 1,500 for Europe and Central Asia
- 3,000 from Latin America and the Caribbean
- 1,500 from the Near East and South Asia
- 1,000 for an unallocated reserve
The Biden team's review of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program it inherited from the previous administration revealed 'it was even more decimated than we´d thought, requiring a major overhaul in order to build back toward the numbers to which we´ve committed,' the official said.
'That build-back is and has been happening and will enable us to support much increased admissions numbers in future years,' the official said.
Refugee advocates said they were disappointed by the news, saying it was unjustified given that there are 35,000 refugees who have already been security vetted and cleared for entry to the United States and that there are 100,000 at various stages in the pipeline.
They said there is still an incredible need that Biden's decision will not address. Advocates did say that changing the Trump-era allocations could allow for a wider group of refugees to be reconsidered for resettlement.
In February, Biden had committed to allowing up to 62,500 refugees to enter the country in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30 - above Ethiopians are seen at Um Rakuba refugee camp in February after they escaped the Sudan
Refugee groups had expressed frustration that Biden had delayed issuing the cap, which had left refugees who were scheduled to travel stranded.
Mark Hetfield, president of the HIAS resettlement agency, said that around 700 flights were canceled due to the holdup.
'They have lost two months of processing,' he said, adding that the delays came on top of pandemic-related restrictions for immigration interviews that had also stalled admissions.
The International Rescue Committee in a statement called it 'a disturbing and unjustified retreat' from Biden's earlier pledge, and said that at the current rate of admissions the administration is on track to resettle the lowest number of refugees of any president in U.S. history.'
'This is a time of unprecedented global need, and the U.S. is still far from returning to its historic role of safe haven for the world´s persecuted and most vulnerable,' said David Miliband, the New York-based organization's president and chief executive.
Advocates had been pushing for the administration to change the allocation put in place by Trump, which created new categories for refugees subject to religious persecution.
The move comes after Biden signed an executive order pledging to dramatically increase the number of refugees admitted in the 2022 fiscal year, which begins on Oct. 1, 2021, to 125,000.
Refugee admissions reached historic lows under Trump, who portrayed refugees as a security threat and made limiting the number of immigrants allowed into the United States a hallmark of his presidency.
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