(CNN) — US President Joe Biden is expected to announce an executive order this Tuesday that would effectively close the border with Mexico to asylum seekers who cross illegally when a daily threshold of crossings is exceeded, a broad and controversial proposal that is likely to receive a fierce rejection from progressives and immigration advocates.
The order, described to CNN by several people briefed on it, would mark a significant attempt by Biden to address one of his biggest political vulnerabilities, just weeks before the first presidential debate with former President Donald Trump. Trump has made hardline immigration policies a cornerstone of his campaign.
The executive order uses an authority known as “212(f),” a regulation used under the Trump administration and widely denounced at the time by Democrats.
The regulations, which have been in the works for months, would severely restrict migrants from seeking asylum at the US southern border if they crossed the border illegally once daily encounters between ports of entry reached 2,500. meaning the measure is likely to take effect almost immediately. Immigrants could still request an appointment to file their asylum claim at a port of entry.
Migrants light makeshift bonfires as they wait to enter and seek asylum in El Paso, Texas, from Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico, on April 2, 2024. Christian Monterrosa/AFP/Getty Images
Unaccompanied children would be exempt, a key piece of the order that would worry immigration advocates who have said such an exemption could encourage some families to send their children to the border on their own.
The decree would allow authorities to reject migrants while it is in force, whether to Mexico or their country of origin. The United States previously worked with Mexico when a Covid-19-era border restriction, known as Title 42, also resulted in the return of certain migrants to Mexico.
Sources who described the regulations to CNN cautioned that changes could still be made to the text before it is publicly revealed this week.
The action would mark a significant policy shift for the Biden administration, which has taken a more aggressive approach to border security after years of dealing with crises fueled by record migration while trying to blunt Republican attacks during a heated election year.
Border authorities have recently been apprehending just under 4,000 migrants illegally crossing the border, according to a Homeland Security official, and there have been approximately 1,500 appointments per day through the US Customs and Border Protection mobile app.
Under the decree, the border would reopen once daily illegal crossings decreased, according to one of the sources.
Senior White House officials, including Chief of Staff Jeff Zients, have been calling lawmakers and other stakeholders over the weekend to brief them on the plans, according to two sources familiar with the discussions.
CNN first reported that the White House began reaching out to border mayors to attend the announcement.
Edinburg Mayor Ramiro Garza confirmed to CNN that the administration contacted him this Saturday to attend a Tuesday event at the White House. Brownsville Mayor John Cowen said he was also invited and will attend. Harlingen Mayor Norma Sepúlveda and Laredo Mayor Dr. Víctor D. Treviño have also confirmed that they are expected to attend the event. McAllen Mayor Javier Villalobos also said that he was invited but that he will not be able to attend.
CNN’s Camila DeChalus contributed to this report.
