Asylum Rule Poll

Since 2014, the flow of asylum seekers into the United States has skyrocketed. According to the Department of Homeland Security, two thousand inadmissible migrants arrive at our border every day and overwhelm our immigration system, many of whom are seeking asylum.

Recently, President Trump introduced an interim rule aimed to reduce a major 'pull' factor driving irregular migration to the United States and enable the Departments of Homeland Security and Justice to more quickly and efficiently process cases originating from the southern border. This rule prohibits migrants who have traveled through a third country to apply for asylum in the U.S. if they have failed to apply for asylum in the country they passed through, meaning fewer individuals transiting through Mexico on a dangerous journey. 

I believe asylum should not be used as a way to circumvent the legal process of entering our country; it should only be used as it was originally intended – for those seeking protection because they have suffered persecution or fear that they will suffer persecution due to race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion.

Opponents of this rule say that this will further endanger migrants from South and Central America as they make their way northward.

Last week, however, a federal judge in California blocked this rule just hours after a federal judge in Washington, D.C., had decided to let the rule stand.

While I believe the administration’s rule will help the current crisis, legislation is necessary to fix our broken immigration and asylum systems. We must address the roots of this crisis and increase integrity in the asylum system.