Biden administration proposes major asylum system remodel

Migrants at border.
(Image credit: Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

The Biden administration on Wednesday proposed a major, long-awaited overhaul to the U.S. asylum system, a decision that comes as migrant apprehensions at the southern border reach a 21-year high, Politico reports.

The policy, a draft of which was reported by Buzzfeed News in May, targets the years-long backlog in immigration cases and aims to expedite new claims by shifting decision-making power for certain migrants away from immigration judges and toward asylum officers, per Buzzfeed. In the case of a denied claim, the asylum seeker would be able to appeal the decision.

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Brigid Kennedy

Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.