Biden reverses on pledge to increase refugee cap from Trump's historic low

Joe Biden.
(Image credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

The Biden administration will not raise the U.S. refugee cap from its historically low level set by the Trump administration, a senior administration official told The New York Times.

While President Biden previously pledged to welcome more than 60,000 refugees, rather than the 15,000 maximum set by his predecessor, the White House will instead keep the target of refugee admissions at the lower level. The reversal "signals the president's hesitant approach to rebuilding an immigration system gutted by his successor," writes the Times, noting hundreds of refugees fleeing war and religious persecution have already been left in limbo by the delayed decision on the cap.

The decision reportedly comes as a result of a surge of migrants at the southern border, which has "already overwhelmed the refugee branch of the Department of Health and Human Services," though asylum seekers go through a different process than refugees seeking protections.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Read more at The New York Times.

Explore More