Hi there.
There has been plenty of reason to be critical of President Biden’s approach to the border thus far. The administration has seemed woefully underprepared for the surge of border crossings that we’ve seen as a result of rolling back some draconian Trump-era executive orders. In particular, Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra’s lack of experience has been glaring in the effort to properly house unaccompanied migrant children, and Biden has hesitated to fulfill his campaign promise of raising the number of refugees the United States will accept.
But things are slowly getting better. ABC News reports that the Biden Administration has begun reuniting migrant families, which is a major milestone. And the Associated Press reports that Biden is finally raising the refugee cap. There is obviously much work still to be done, but these are both very good signs.
And yet, when Republicans aren’t whining about cancel culture or taxes on the rich, they’re beating a steady drum about the crisis at the border, placing blame solely on Biden.
It’s worth remembering that Biden released a legislative plan for immigration reform on Inauguration Day. It’s not the law of the land because Republicans who complain incessantly about the border (and about Democratic partisanship) haven’t made any effort to negotiate the plan. That’s why according to the New York Times, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is now exploring options for passing parts of the immigration plan through budget reconciliation, which can’t be filibustered. I’m skeptical Democrats will be able to get much done that way for multiple reasons. First, it’s not clear to me what parts of the immigration agenda could be passed under reconciliation rules. Reconciliation is strictly for taxing and spending. They may be able to increase funding for humanitarian efforts on the border, but they won’t be able to address the root causes of the border crisis. And perhaps more importantly, Joe Manchin has no apparent appetite for more reconciliation bills. I’m not totally convinced he’ll even support the American Jobs Plan and American Family Plan if Democrats go the reconciliation route. It’s hard to image a world in which he supports it for immigration reform.
Still, a reconciliation push could be a decent political ploy, forcing the Republicans to switch from shouting about how Biden isn’t doing enough about immigration to shouting about how Biden is doing too much about immigration.
Time will tell how it works out.
In other news, the NYT reports that Richard Cordray, a longtime ally of Senator Elizabeth Warren, has been chosen to lead the White House on federal student aid policies, making him central to the ongoing debate about student loan forgiveness. Gray Television is buying out Meredith Local Media Group, according to The Hill. A Wired column examines the theater of diversity in Silicon Valley. And Platformer dives deep into the culture controversy at the tech company Basecamp.
Lastly, AP News suggests that a new Iran nuclear deal could be closer than we think. Cheers to that.
Thank you for caring enough to read.
Be safe. Wear a mask. You are loved.
Talk to you tomorrow.