The amnesties will continue until Biden’s poll numbers improve

When President Barack Obama first announced his illegal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program 12 years ago today, he could at least plausibly claim that his unilateral executive action was not an amnesty.

Yes, illegal immigrants who had entered the country as children were given legal status and work permits, but DACA by itself did not create a path to citizenship by itself, and the status and permits would have to be renewed in two years. 

The program President Joe Biden is announcing today, another abuse of the parole authority, is an amnesty, as it will create a path to citizenship for an estimated 500,000 illegal immigrants that did not exist before.

Under statute, an illegal immigrant who is married to a U.S. citizen may apply for a green card, but they first have to return to their home country, and leaving the United States after living here illegally can trigger a 10-year ban for admittance. Biden’s new plan uses his parole authority to waive the requirement that illegal immigrants married to a citizen have to first leave the country before they can apply for a green card.

Under the new Biden amnesty, illegal immigrants must have been living in the United States for ten years to qualify for the program, but this is a completely made up number found nowhere in statute. Biden is essentially creating brand new amnesty programs without congressional approval on the fly.