President Joe Biden took bold new steps this week to make sure American families can remain together by protecting undocumented spouses of American citizens from deportation.
Apart from being the right thing to do, it also stands in sharp contrast to presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump’s past actions and future promises, so it’s no surprise that Stephen Miller, the architect of the Trump administration’s inhumane immigration policies, is freaking out, calling it an “attack on democracy.”
It is hard to overstate what a big deal this is for the families that will benefit from Biden’s order. On Tuesday, the president unveiled a plan that will prevent the deportation of about 500,000 undocumented immigrants married to American citizens. “These couples have been raising families, sending their kids to church and school, paying taxes, contributing to our country,” Biden said.
Biden’s plan is the biggest step the federal government has made to protect undocumented immigrants since that Obama-era policy began.
The president made the announcement at an event marking the 12th anniversary of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, which extended similar protection to people who arrived in the U.S. illegally as children. Biden’s plan is the biggest step the federal government has made to protect undocumented immigrants since that Obama-era policy began.
The blueprint for Biden’s executive order builds on “parole in place” protections for families of U.S. military members that have been in place since the George W. Bush administration. In addition to protecting spouses of American citizens, Biden’s program will also allow about 50,000 undocumented stepchildren of citizens to remain in the U.S. The new plan also opens the door for a pathway to citizenship.
Biden’s new executive actions to keep families together marks an obvious contrast with the Trump administration’s destructive “zero tolerance” family separation policy. But it also serves as a stark reminder of Trump’s alarming proposals for a second term.
On the campaign trail, Trump has vowed to carry out the mass deportation of immigrants, many of whom have lived in the country for decades. During a rally in Wisconsin after Biden’s announcement, he promised to rip up Biden’s immigration policies on the first day of a possible second term, shattering the lives of millions of immigrants and their families.
The most extreme voices on the right are freaking out over Biden’s concrete steps to ensure American families can stay together. That’s not just because they disagree with them as policy but also because they know that relief for immigrants who have been in the U.S. for years — if not decades — is popular across the broader electorate. That’s one reason why people like Miller resort to spreading untruths about immigration in America.
Surprising no one, Miller immediately blasted Biden’s order with a flood of misinformation echoing the “great replacement” theory, a far-right conspiracy theory that nefarious forces are seeking to undermine white Americans. Miller falsely described the humanitarian crisis at our southern border as an “invasion.” He also slammed pathways to citizenship for those who qualify as turning “family networks” into “full-voting citizens.” This inflammatory rhetoric might fuel outrage algorithms in far-right echo chambers, but it does not help the country address the problems with our broken immigration system.
As we barrel toward the first presidential debate, immigration will undoubtedly take center stage. The question Trump must be forced to answer is not only what he will do at the border but what he will do to American families across the nation that include U.S. citizens and the undocumented people they love. America’s commitment to providing freedom and opportunities for those searching for a better life is woven into the fabric of our society. During Biden’s announcement Tuesday, he reminded us all that “the Statue of Liberty is not some relic of American history. It stands — still stands for who we are.”
For more thought-provoking insights from Alicia Menendez, Michael Steele and Symone Sanders-Townsend, watch “The Weekend” every Saturday and Sunday at 8 a.m. ET on MSNBC.
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