Tougher restrictions on asylum seekers at US-Mexico borders

The US government has announced even tougher restrictions on asylum seekers at the US-Mexico border as it tries to show voters it is getting tough on border security. The new rules, which reinforce restrictions announced in June, prohibit authorities from granting asylum to migrants when they believe the border is overwhelmed.

Under previous rules, the United States could restrict asylum when the number of migrants trying to reach the country through official border crossings reached 2,500 per day. Numbers would have to average less than 1,500 per day for a week for restrictions to be lifted.

But the version announced on Monday states that daily numbers will have to average less than 1,500 for almost a month for restrictions to be lifted. And what’s more, the US government will now include all children in that number, whereas previously it only included migrant children from Mexico.

The changes, which came into force on Tuesday, will make it much more difficult to lift restrictions and allow people entering the country at official border crossings to apply for asylum.

But restrictions implemented in June were never lifted because the number of border encounters was never low enough during that time, raising the question of why the United States felt the need to strengthen them. The seven-day average has dropped to about 1,800 encounters per day, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

The issue of border security and unauthorized immigration is a weak point for the Biden administration and Vice President Kamala Harris, who is the Democratic presidential nominee.

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and other members of that party have attacked the administration for the high number of migrants arriving at the southern border, saying the White House and Harris have not done enough to restrict immigration and secure the border.