Nearly 500,000 undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens are expected to receive green cards on the 12th anniversary of the Dreamers program

On June 18, local time, US President Biden announced a new immigration policy that will benefit undocumented immigrant spouses of US citizens. The Associated Press reported that the policy, called "local parole," allows about 500,000 eligible undocumented immigrants to avoid deportation. Spouses of undocumented immigrants who have lived in the US for at least 10 years will also receive temporary work permits.

According to National Public Radio, the program applies to undocumented immigrants who have lived in the United States for 10 years and married a U.S. citizen on or before June 17, but not to immigrants who have been deported. In addition, 50,000 non-citizen stepchildren whose parents are U.S. citizens are also eligible for this protection.

Biden announced the new program at a White House event marking the 12th anniversary of the Obama-era Dreamers program.

The new immigration plan may help Biden win more Hispanic votes. "We expect immigrants and Hispanic voters to express their gratitude to Biden at the polls in November," said Gustavo Torres, president of CASAinAction, an organization that supports progressive immigration policies.

But some Republicans have fiercely criticized the policy, saying it constitutes an "attack on democracy." "This is an unconstitutional amnesty policy for illegal aliens during an 'invasion' at the border," Stephen Miller, a senior adviser to Trump, said on social media platform X.

The most comprehensive measure to protect the rights of undocumented immigrants since Obama

In 2012, then-US President Obama signed the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which allowed young illegal immigrants who were brought to the United States by their parents when they were young to avoid deportation and to obtain legal employment. These people are called "Dreamers" and the program is also called the "Dreamer" program.

Under normal circumstances, foreign citizens who are married to U.S. citizens are eligible for green cards, but those who illegally cross the southern border of the United States must return to their home countries to complete the green card application process, which means that these undocumented immigrants have to be separated from their spouses or families. The new policy enacted by the Biden administration will allow these people to remain in the United States while applying for legal status without having to wait in their country of origin.

The New York Times, citing an official familiar with the matter, reported that Biden's announcement may be the government's "most comprehensive" unilateral move to provide relief to undocumented immigrants since Obama implemented the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Biden will also announce another initiative to help "dreamers" in DACA obtain work visas. Mary Urbina, executive director of the nonprofit Indivisible, said, "Biden's policy is likely to be the biggest news in the field of regular immigration policy since the launch of the DACA program in 2012."

Democratic progressives and immigration advocacy groups welcomed the new immigration policy. Representative Nanette Barragan, D-Calif., chairwoman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, said she expected the policy would bring "tears of joy and sighs of relief" to the beneficiary families.

The Financial Times reported that Biden's policy was not only an attempt to appease progressives within the Democratic Party, but also to deflect criticism from conservative Republicans including Trump. The New York Times analyzed that this policy shows that Biden is trying to "strike a balance" on one of the most important political issues in 2024.

Some analysts believe that for some time, White House officials have been considering various options to provide asylum to "immigrants who do not have legal status but have long-term ties to the United States." Biden's policy not only allows these immigrants to avoid deportation and obtain work permits, but also removes legal barriers, allowing eligible immigrants to apply for permanent residency and eventually obtain U.S. citizenship. In fact, the relevant policy was once applied to other categories of immigrants, such as military families who lack legal status.

In addition to the urging of immigration advocates and Democratic lawmakers, Biden's decision to release this policy may also be due to his consideration of winning over Hispanic voters in "swing states." The American Business Immigration Coalition, an organization representing hundreds of companies and supporting the proposed policy changes, assessed that this move could help Biden win in "key swing states" such as Nevada, Arizona and Georgia because these states have more than 100,000 voters living in "mixed-status" families.

Although the policy only applies to spouses of undocumented immigrants who have lived in the U.S. for a long time, some Republicans have criticized it. Republican Senator John Cornyn of Texas said the policy is a "huge magnet" for potential immigrants and "will draw more people" to the border.

In addition, there are reports that this policy may face a similar fate as DACA, that is, it will be challenged at the legal level. In October 2022, the U.S. Federal Court of Appeals ruled that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program violated U.S. immigration law, dealing a blow to the program to protect immigrants.

Illegal immigration has become one of the most concerned issues for the American people during the election. An open opinion poll released by Gallup Consulting on April 30 showed that immigration has been the "most important issue" for most Americans for three consecutive months.

This also prompted Biden to speed up the introduction of policies to combat illegal immigration, including limiting the eligibility of illegal immigrants to apply for asylum and allowing border managers to quickly deport illegal immigrants. On the 4th of this month, Biden signed an executive order that stipulates the implementation of a "fuse mechanism" when the number of illegal immigrants exceeds a certain number, allowing law enforcement officers to send illegal border crossers back to Mexico and suspend the acceptance of political asylum applications. A Monmouth University poll showed that this policy was approved by 38% of Democrats, 40% of independent voters and 44% of Republicans.