This Week In Immigration

This week we’ll get an update on the situation with the Afghan refugees and the history of Special Immigrant Visas, featuring BPC Fellow Ruth Wasem. Then, we talk about the State Department’s visa backlogs and the risk wasting up to 100,000 green cards this year. And finally, a super-sized segment of the Gavel. 

BPC regulars Theresa Brown and Sadikshya Nepal discuss the unfolding refugee crisis in Afghanistan, the July border numbers, the new court ruling on the Migrant Protection Protocols program in Texas, new confirmations of officials to USCIS and ICE, and finally a brief progress update on Democrats’ budget reconciliation package in Congress.

It's officially episode 100 and we’re celebrating with some return guests and highlights. We’ll also touch on developments from the Biden administration: their new blueprint to address root causes of Central American migration and the indefinite extension of the Title 42 public health order, so stick around.  What To Know on Immigration: https://bipartisanpolicy.org/podcast/what-to-know-on-immigration/  

On this week’s episode, we begin with the Biden administration’s recent policy changes for H-1B visa petitions and what it means for the adjudication process within the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services agency. Then we break-down CBP's June report on encounters at the southwest border and the Texas district court’s decision against the DACA program. 

On this week’s episode, we are joined by special guest and BPC Fellow Ruth Wasem to discuss the recent Supreme Court ruling on Temporary Protected Status and its ramifications for TPS holders across the United States. We’ll then turn to This Week regular Theresa Cardinal Brown for the latest updates on Vice President Kamala Harris’s trip to the southwest border.  

On This Week’s episode, we have a timely discussion of the newly published spring 2021 regulatory agenda, in which our regular This Week team analyzes and unpacks new regulations the various immigration agencies hope to promulgate. Finally, we turn to a discussion of the budget reconciliation process with special guest and BPC Action Managing Director Laura Hall.  

On this week’s episode, we discuss everything from President Biden’s fiscal year 2022 budget request to the Vice President’s recent trip to Guatemala and Mexico, for which we are joined by special guest Eric Olson of the Seattle International Foundation. 

On This Week’s episode, we feature a special conversation in honor of Memorial Day. This Week regular Theresa Cardinal Brown is joined by special guests Steve Miska and Dave Lapan. Steve, a retired Army Colonel, and Dave, a retired Marine Colonel, spend the episode discussing the work Iraqi and Afghan interpreters did for the United States military, the dangers they faced, and the efforts to get them visas to come to the US.

On this week’s episode, we have another special guest, Mark Greenberg of the Migration Policy Institute joining us to talk about the refugee admissions cap and explain the role the Office of Refugee Resettlement plays in overseeing the custody of unaccompanied migrant children in the United States. Then, we’ll have a conversation with This Week regular Theresa Cardinal Brown about Vice President Kamala Harris’s upcoming trip to Guatemala. 

On this week’s episode, special guest and BPC Fellow Ruth Wasem joins us to unpack President Biden’s recent, actions relating to the refugee admissions cap for 2021. Then, we’ll turn to the administration’s decision to increase the number of H-2B visas, and discuss the bipartisan immigration talks currently going on in the Senate. 

On this week’s episode, a timely discussion of the large increase unaccompanied children arriving at the U.S.-Mexico Border. Then, we turn to pending legislation adjusting the status of the undocumented and have a conversation on recent DHS nominations. Finally, we’ll conclude with a Gavel segment to talk about the recent lawsuits the Biden administration is facing.  

On This Week’s episode, we start with an update on recent discussions between the White House and Mexico on the current situation at the southwest border. Then, we’ll introduce today’s special guest Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, Policy Counsel at the American Immigration Council, for a timely discussion of his research on asylum-seekers and how, despite common rhetoric, they do indeed appear for their immigration hearings.

On this week’s program, we tackle the current situation at the border and how this may affect President Biden’s larger legislative agenda on immigration. We’ll conclude with a segment of The Gavel to discuss how the courts continue to influence the direction of immigration policy under the Biden administration.

On this week’s episode, we present highlights from a March 1, 2021 Bipartisan Policy Center event, titled: “Go Big or Get Something Done: Bipartisan Wins for Immigration.” Led by BPC's Theresa Cardinal Brown, guests from the agriculture industry, tech and an immigration advocacy organization, as well as our own BPC Fellow, Casey Higgins, discussed the chances of immigration legislation moving this Congress, whether comprehensive legislation is the way to go, or whether smaller, targeted bills aimed at DREAMers, the agricultural industry, or COVID essential workers could succeed better. The discussion was far ranging and covered the importance of getting something done this Congress, why these smaller bills could notch up bipartisan wins, and what some of the obstacles might be to achieving those wins.

In honor of Black History Month, today’s podcast will dive into racial equity in the immigration system and how the Biden administration may or may not be addressing specific issues for Black immigrants today. On this week’s episode, Theresa Cardinal Brown hosts special guest Allen Orr, President-Elect of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, for a timely discussion of Black immigrants and the immigration system.

On this week's episode, the team tackles President Joe Biden’s immigration agenda: what he’s already done, and what he might yet do and whether Congress will go along with him. Host Rachel Iacono is joined by This Week regular Theresa Cardinal Brown, along with two special guests: Laura Hall, Managing Director of BPC Action, and Casey Higgins, a BPC fellow with the immigration project and former policy adviser to Speaker of the House Paul Ryan. The experts unpack the recent slew of immigration executive orders, as well as the White House's plan to introduce a massive reform bill.

On this week's episode, Theresa Cardinal Brown hosted a deep-dive conversation to discuss the roundtables and respective report that looks into how local community leaders viewed the immigration issue being debated nationally. She's joined by Laura Goldberg, Vice President of Strategic Initiatives and Communications at the Center for Houston's Future, Julie Bunczak, Program Manager at the Wisconsin Institute for Public Policy and Service, and Mark Hugo Lopez, Director of Global Migration and Demography Research at Pew Research Center. You can find the report here.

On this week’s program, we kick off 2021 with Theresa Cardinal Brown hosting a special conversation with BPC Fellow Ruth Wasem. The episode begins with a brief discussion of the violent efforts to disrupt the certification of the Electoral college vote last week. Later, the two immigration experts will provide a rundown of recent “midnight actions” that President Trump has taken in the final few weeks of his administration. They then turn to discussing administrative and legislative options Biden may take to undo such actions during the first months of his presidency.

In light of the violent efforts to disrupt the certification of Electoral College vote last week, we have decided to delay the recording and release of our next podcast episode. We will be resuming our recording schedule this week, so please keep your eye out for our next episode in your podcast feed. You can find Jason Grumet’s full statement at bipartisanpolicy.org.

On this week’s program, BPC regular Theresa Cardinal Brown sits down with special guest Charles Kamasaki, author of “Immigration Reform: The Corpse that Will Not Die,” to discuss the 2020 election results and its implications for comprehensive immigration reform. The team also has a super-sized edition of the Gavel where they cover recent rulings, rules and regulations on everything from DACA to the H-1B program to the public charge rule.