The issue of immigration has long remained a blind spot during US President Joe Biden's term of office, which has otherwise been rich in structural reforms. This lack of action is undoubtedly due to internal Democratic differences and, above all, to the lack of consensus between the two major parties represented in Congress. With illegal entry figures reaching an all-time high in December, Biden has resigned himself to trying to find answers. In return, the American leader is hoping that the Republicans will agree to a new tranche of military aid for Ukraine.
To achieve this, Biden agreed to harden his positions. The compromise draft currently being drawn up in the Senate by elected representatives from both sides provides for a significant increase in the number of border police officers, more capacity in detention centers, faster procedures for examining asylum applications and more resources for deporting rejected asylum seekers.
Biden has also dropped his call for regularizations, including for migrants who arrived illegally on US soil as minors and have since been fully integrated into American society. Until now, this had been a constant demand from the Democratic camp.
Such a bipartisan agreement, if adopted, would represent a breakthrough after decades of stalemate that have deprived the US of legislation tailored to the challenge posed by the dramatic rise in illegal entries. The last agreement – reached in the Senate in 2013 with the help of eight Republican elected officials under a Democratic president – was subsequently blocked by the House of Representatives, then under Republican control, as not being restrictive enough.
Republican drift
There is every reason to believe that this experience could be repeated, thanks to the man who likes to present himself as the champion of the fight against immigration: Donald Trump. Trump is throwing all his might into defeating this compromise, which would nevertheless drastically reduce the number of illegal entries. With less than 10 months to go before the presidential election, the former businessman would rather inflict a setback on his likely future opponent in November than see measures put in place in line with his demands.
This comes as no surprise from a former president who, at the beginning of the month, seemed indifferent to the prospect of an economic crisis, provided it occurred before his eventual return to the White House. This policy of pushing toward the worst-case outcome is all the easier to put into practice as the narrow Republican majority in the House of Representatives has taken it hostage with the help of some 20 MAGA elected officials.
The Republican drift doesn't stop there. Governor of Texas Greg Abbott has decided to turn a deaf ear to a decision by the Supreme Court, even though it is overwhelmingly conservative, ordering the dismantling of barbed wire installed by his departments on the border with Mexico. This barbed wire prevents access to the federal border police, who are responsible for this area. By placing the sovereignty of Texas above that of the federal state, to the applause of Trump, the governor is dangerously weakening his own country.