In another significant departure from the Biden administration’s immigration policies announced Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security has rescinded existing guidelines that prevent immigration officers from entering “sensitive” areas such as schools.
In a statement, DHS said the guidelines “fail” to enforce the law.
“This action empowers the brave men and women at CBP. [Customs and Border Protection] and ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] to enforce our immigration laws and apprehend criminal aliens — including murderers and rapists — who have entered our country illegally,” said a DHS spokesperson.
The spokesperson added that the “Trump administration will not tie the hands of law enforcement” and expects them to “use common sense.”
A second directive prohibits the use of humanitarian parole, which has helped certain categories of immigrants enter the United States. Individuals will now be considered on a case-by-case basis.
An internal memo obtained by the BBC’s US partner CBS also revealed that the State Department had canceled all refugee processing and travel to the US.
According to the document, officials were directed to halt the process of extraditing refugees abroad and to halt the Biden administration’s program that allows private US citizens to sponsor refugees.
