Page 2 - aruba-today-20220331
P. 2

A2   UP FRONT
                  Thursday 31 March 2022
                                                                                                                                justified  policy  that  should
                                                                                                                                never  have  been  enact-
                                                                                                                                ed and has caused grave
                                                                                                                                harm  to  thousands  of  asy-
                                                                                                                                lum-seekers  over  the  past
                                                                                                                                two  years,"  said  immigra-
                                                                                                                                tion attorney Lee Gelernt of
                                                                                                                                the American Civil Liberties
                                                                                                                                Union.
                                                                                                                                While there is no aggregate
                                                                                                                                rate for migrants, COVID-19
                                                                                                                                test results from several ma-
                                                                                                                                jor  corridors  for  illegal  bor-
                                                                                                                                der  crossings  suggest  it  is
                                                                                                                                well below levels that have
                                                                                                                                triggered concerns among
                                                                                                                                U.S. officials.
                                                                                                                                In California, 54 of 2,877 mi-
                                                                                                                                grants tested positive in the
                                                                                                                                first  two  weeks  of  March,
                                                                                                                                according to the state De-
                                                                                                                                partment  of  Social  Servic-
                                                                                                                                es. That's a rate of just 1.9%,
                                                                                                                                down from a peak of 28.2%
                                                                                                                                on Jan. 8.
                                                                                                                                In  Pima  County,  Arizona,
                                                                                                                                which includes Tucson, the
                                                                                                                                seven-day  positivity  rate
                                                                                                                                among  migrants  didn't  ex-
                                                                                                                                ceed  1.3%  in  early  March.
                                                                                                                                The  positivity  rate  among
                                                                                                                                5,300  migrants  tested  last
            Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, speaks to the media about the U.S. southern border, Wednesday, March 30, 2022, in Washington.   month  at  the  Regional
                                                                                                               Associated Press  Center  for  Border  Health
                                                                                                                                near  Yuma,  Arizona,  was
            Continued from Front         and  officials  were  expect-  CDC officials, and Dr. Mar-  ly and Kyrsten Sinema, both  0.1%.
            Whenever  the  limits  are  ed  to  announce  as  early  tin Cetron of the Division of  Arizona  Democrats,  sided  McAllen,  Texas,  the  larg-
            lifted,  his  communications  as  Friday  that  it  would  be  Migration  and  Quarantine  with Republican leaders to  est  city  in  the  busiest  cor-
            director  said  "there  will  be  terminated,  giving  border  refused the order to begin  say  Title  42  should  remain  ridor  for  illegal  crossings,
            an  influx  of  people  to  the  authorities  a  few  months  its use. He said there was no  until  U.S.  border  authorities  has  a  higher  rate  among
            border.  We  are  doing  a  to prepare for the coming  public health basis for such  were prepared for sharp in-    migrants  —  11.3%  for  the
            lot of work to plan for that  deadline.                   a drastic move, the AP re-   creases in new arrivals.     week  ending  March  16  —
            contingency."     Speaking  The  people  familiar  with  ported. But then-Vice Presi-  "The  Border  Patrol  agents  but it has been consistent-
            broadly,  Kate  Bedingfield  the plans saw a draft report  dent  Mike  Pence  ordered  told me they expect a tsu-   ly  lower  than  the  general
            said  the  administration  is  that has not been finalized  the  CDC's  director  to  use  nami  of  humans  to  come  population.
            trying  to  "build  up  our  mi-  and they spoke to The As-  the  agency's  emergency  across the border and the  CDC  Director  Dr.  Rochelle
            gration  system  and  ensure  sociated Press on condition  powers and it went into ef-  Border Patrol has said they  Walensky   noted   falling
            that we are restoring order  of anonymity to discuss the  fect.                        will  lose  control  entirely,"  rates  when  she  ended
            at the border."              plans.                       As  mask  mandates  were  said  Sen.  John  Cornyn,  asylum limits on unaccom-
            The  Centers  for  Disease  The  limits  went  into  place  lifted,  vaccination  rates  R-Texas.  Homeland  Secu-  panied  child  migrants  on
            Control  and  Prevention  in  March  2020  under  the  climbed  and  COVID-19  rity  officials  said  they  are  March  11,  while  keeping
            had  extended  its  asylum-  Trump  administration  as  rates  dropped  among  mi-     planning  for  as  many  as  them  for  adults  and  fami-
            blocking  powers  for  two  coronavirus  cases  soared.  grants  crossing  from  Mexi-  18,000 arrivals daily, an as-  lies with kids. In August, U.S.
            months  in  late  January,  While  officials  said  at  the  co  it  became  increasingly  tounding number that they  border  authorities  began
            near the height of the omi-  time  that  it  was  a  way  to  difficult to defend the order  cautioned  was  simply  to  testing  children  traveling
            cron  variant.  The  authority  keep  COVID-19  out  of  the  on scientific grounds.   prepare for all possible out-  alone in their busiest areas:
            is up for renewal this week,  United States, there always  Biden, who has rolled back  comes, not projections.      Positives fell to 6% in the first
             ARUBA                       restrictions  were  used  as  restrictive policies, has tak-  major changes to how mi-  of nearly 20% in early Feb-
                                         has been criticism that the  some of Trump's other more  But  there  have  been  no  week of March from a high

                                         an excuse to seal the bor-
                                                                      en  increasing  criticism  for  grants are processed at the  ruary.  Asylum  limits  have
                     CLEAN               der  to  migrants  unwanted  keeping the policy.          U.S.-Mexico border and no  been  applied  unevenly
                                         by  then-President  Donald  Homeland Security officials,  increase in holding facilities  by  nationality,  depending
                                         Trump.                       Senate  Majority  Leader  for  them.  The  immigration  largely on costs and diplo-
                                         It was perhaps the broadest  Chuck  Schumer  of  New  court backlog continues to  matic  relations  with  home
                                         of Trump's actions to restrict  York and other top Demo-  soar  to  more  than  1.7  mil-  countries.  Many  migrants
                                         crossings  and  crack  down  crats were increasingly vo-  lion cases.                  have  been  spared  from
                                         on migrants. The health or-  cal  about  wanting  to  end  Critics say Title 42 has been  Cuba,  Venezuela,  Nicara-
                                         der has caused migrants to  so-called  Title  42  authority,  an excuse to avoid asylum  gua  and,  more  recently,
                                         be  expelled  from  the  Unit-  named  for  a  1944  public  obligations  under  U.S.  law  Ukraine.  Homeland  Secu-
                                         ed States more than 1.7 mil-  health law to prevent com-  and  international  treaty,  rity  officials  wrote  border
                                         lion times since March 2020  municable disease.           buying  Biden  time  to  cre-  authorities  this  month  that
                                         without a chance for them  Not all Democratic elected  ate  the  "humane"  asylum  Ukrainians may be exempt,
                    IS MORE              to request asylum.           officials  agreed,  includ-  system  that  he  promised  saying    Russia's   invasion
                  DUSHI                  And  restrictions  took  ef-  ing some from border and  during his 2020 campaign.      "created  a  humanitarian
                                         fect over the objections of  swing states. Sens. Mark Kel-
                                                                                                   "Title 42 is a horrific and un-
                                                                                                                                crisis."q
   1   2   3   4   5   6   7