A federal judge on Friday said the Biden administration must resume a policy that sees asylum seekers wait in Mexico for their claims to be heard.<\/p>\n The Department of Homeland Security \u201cfailed to consider several critical factors\u201d before axing the Trump era \u201cRemain in Mexico\u201d policy,<\/strong>\u00a0U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, a Trump appointee, found.<\/p>\n That included ignoring how the program was beginning to lead to some immigrants with asylum claims that lacked merit voluntarily returning home, he wrote in\u00a0a 53-page ruling<\/a>.<\/p>\n Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on June 1 of this year formally ended \u201cRemain in Mexico,\u201d though in practice it was stopped when President\u00a0Joe Biden<\/a>\u00a0entered office on Jan. 20.<\/strong>\u00a0In a memorandum (pdf<\/a>) to top immigration officials, Mayorkas said a review determined the policy \u201cdoes not adequately or sustainably enhance border management in such a way as to justify the program\u2019s extensive operational burdens and other shortfalls.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOver the course of the program, border encounters increased during certain periods and decreased during others. Moreover, in making my assessment, I share the belief that we can only manage migration in an effective, responsible, and durable manner if we approach the issue comprehensively, looking well beyond our own borders,\u201d he wrote.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n The memo fails to mention some of the primary benefits of the program, which is known as MPP, Kacsmaryk said.<\/p>\n \u201cAt the very least, the Secretary was required to show a reasoned decision for discounting the benefits of MPP. Instead, the June 1 Memorandum does not address the problems created by false claims of asylum or how MPP addressed those problems. Likewise, it does not address the fact that DHS previously found that \u2018approximately 9 out of 10 asylum claims from Northern Triangle countries are ultimately found non-meritorious by federal immigration judges,\u2019 and that MPP discouraged such aliens from traveling and attempting to cross the border in the first place,\u201d he said.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n That made the policy change both arbitrary and capricious, the judge added. The\u00a0Administrative Procedure Act\u00a0states that agency actions that are \u201carbitrary, capricious, or an abuse of discretion\u201d are ripe for being overturned by courts.<\/p>\n Kacsmaryk ordered the Biden administration to resume MPP, though he stayed his order for seven days to let the federal government seek emergency relief at an appeals court.<\/strong><\/p>\n Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican who brought the lawsuit with the state of Missouri, said the ruling showed the Biden administration \u201cunlawfully tried to shut down the legal and effective Remain-in-Mexico program.\u201d<\/p>\n Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt, another Republican, described the ruling as a \u201chuge win for border security and the rule of law.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n The Biden administration did not immediately respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas is seen at a Customs and Border Protection processing facility in Donna, Texas, on May 7, 2021. (Charlotte Cuthbertson\/The Epoch Times)<\/em><\/p>\n The Trump administration established MPP in 2019 to deal with a surge in illegal immigration. Former President\u00a0Donald Trump<\/a>\u00a0successfully partnered with Mexico to start the program, which saw the U.S. send some asylum seekers back to Mexico until their claims were heard.<\/p>\n Kirstjen Nielsen, who served as Homeland Security secretary during the Trump administration, said when the program was first implemented that it was in response to \u201ca security and humanitarian crisis on the Southern border.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cMPP will help restore a safe and orderly immigration process, decrease the number of those taking advantage of the immigration system, and the ability of smugglers and traffickers to prey on vulnerable populations, and reduce threats to life, national security, and public safety, while ensuring that vulnerable populations receive the protections they need,\u201d she said in a statement at the time.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Biden and top officials this year have reversed or altered a number of key Trump-era immigration policies. The United States has seen a leap in illegal border crossings, culminating in\u00a0a new 21-year-high in July<\/a>.<\/p>\n Mayorkas, Biden, and others have repeatedly blamed Trump, claiming his administration\u2019s policies were \u201cinhumane\u201d and needed changing. That process takes time, they\u2019ve said.<\/strong><\/p>\n Speaking about the border crossings during a visit in Texas this week, Mayorkas said one reason for them was \u201cthe end of the cruel policies of the past administration, and the restoration of the rule of laws of this country that Congress has passed, including our asylum laws that provide humanitarian relief.\u201d<\/p>\n Trump \u201cslashed our international assistance to Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras, slashed the resources that we were contributing to address the root causes of a right of irregular migration,\u201d he added later.<\/p>\n Stephen Miller, a top immigration adviser to Trump during the previous administration, called Mayorkas \u201ca pathological liar\u201d in response.<\/p>\n \u201cHe inherited the most secure border\u2014& the most effective enforcement regime\u2014in history,\u201d<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0Miller wrote on Twitter.\u00a0\u201cThe *sole* cause of the present border disaster was Biden\u2019s decision to reverse the Trump program & replace it with sovereignty-erasing catch-and-release.\u201d<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.zerohedge.com\/s3\/files\/inline-images\/Border-Acuna-Mexico-IMG_0649-700x420.jpg?itok=ukU9_sIQ\")
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