President Joe Biden is set to meet with congressional leaders on Wednesday to continue negotiating his request for national security funding, which includes aid for Ukraine and Israel in their respective wars with Russia and Hamas, as well as border security, NBC News reported.
Republican and Democratic leaders from both houses, Mike Johnson and Mitch McConnell, and Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer, are expected to attend along with key committee members.
Border security measures seem to be key to break the deadlock, which has caused a halt in the U.S.'s sending of aid to Ukraine at the end of 2023.
CBS News reported last week that the possibility of granting work permits to asylum seekers has been brought to the negotiating table, something that could make a deal more palatable for some Democrats who have criticized some hardline measures asked for Republicans and that the Biden administration is reportedly willing to concede.
The outlet said the talks also include potentially giving permanent legal status to tens of thousands of Afghan evacuees and relief to children of immigrants working on H-1B visas for high-skilled workers. Members of this group is often at peril of self-deportation when turning 21 because their status is tied to their parents' visas.
With regards to the first item, the proposal entails certain migrants become eligible to work legally in the country if they pass their preliminary asylum interview. Democrats have highlighted the expense represented by migrants who arrive and are capable of working but not legally allowed to do so.
The White House indicated it would support a new law to allow U.S. border officials to summarily expel migrants without processing their asylum claims. This would effectively revive the Trump-era Title 42 pandemic order and allow officials to pause U.S. asylum law without a public health justification.
The administration would also back an expansion of a process known as expedited removal, which allows officials to deport migrants without court hearings if they don't ask for asylum or if they fail their initial asylum interviews. The program is currently limited to the border region. It would also detain certain migrants allowed into the country pending the adjudication of their claims.
Negotiations continue while migration keeps on dominating the national conversation during the electoral year. ABC News reported that there were 302,000 encounters along the southwest border in December, marking the highest monthly total ever recorded.
The issue has become a talking point for Republicans, who have criticized Biden for what they claim is a lax approach to the border. It is even creating tension between the administration and Texas, as the former claims that state authorities have commandeered a sector of the southern border.
The Department of Homeland Security said that if access to a public park on Eagle Pass is not freed, it will refer the matter to the Department of Justice and "explore other option."
Shelby Park is used by Border Patrol agents to inspect and hold migrants and, according to DHS' top lawyer Jonathan Meyer, National Guard forces prevented federal operations to apprehend migrants and rescue those who might be in distress.
The letter cited the deaths of a woman and two children on Friday night as they attempted to cross the Río Grande in that area. Border Patrol authorities said they were made aware of a situation of distress but were prevented from responding by Texas national guard troops under the direction of Texas Governor Greg Abbott.
The parties are at odds over immigration enforcement, with the Department of Justice filing a lawsuit claiming a new Texas law, which allows local officials to arrest and deport migrants who cross the border unlawfully, is also unconstitutional.
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