White House preps ‘dreamers’ celebration while President Biden eyes new benefits for immigrants

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden will host a White House event next week celebrating an Obama-era directive that offered deportation protections for young undocumented immigrants, as his own administration prepares potential new benefits for others without legal status but with long-standing ties in the United States. White House officials are closing in on a plan that would tap Biden’s executive powers to shield spouses of U.S. citizens without legal status from deportation, offer them work permits and ease their path toward permanent residency and eventually American citizenship, according to five people with knowledge of the deliberations. The people said those actions could be unveiled as early as next week, although a White House official stressed Thursday that no final decisions have been made on what Biden will announce, if anything. As of earlier this week, Biden had not been presented with the proposal for his final approval, adding to the uncertainty for the timing of any announcement. The president is currently in Italy participating in the Group of Seven summit of the world’s wealthiest democracies. ADVERTISEMENT But Biden telegraphed last week as he rolled out his directive to crack down on asylum claims at the border — a move that has infuriated immigrant-rights groups and many Democratic lawmakers — that he would be announcing other actions more to the advocates’ liking. RELATED COVERAGE FILE - U.S. Ambassador Ken Salazar arrives to give a press conference at his residence in Mexico City, Oct. 17, 2022. Salazar warned Thursday, June 13, 2024, that migrants who do not opt for a legal pathway into the U.S. will face “great consequences.” (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte, File) US diplomat warns of great consequences for migrants at border who don’t choose legal pathways U.S. Department of State Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens testifies before the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee hearing onThe Plight of Americans Detained Abroad on Capitol Hill, Thursday, June 13, 2024, in Washington. ( AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) US government’s top hostage negotiator defends prisoner swaps with foreign adversaries FILE - The mother of Harry Dunn, Charlotte Charles, center, and his stepfather Bruce Charles, right, arrive at Westminster magistrates Court for a hearing in London, Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022. A British coroner has criticized the U.S. government over a lack of training for diplomatic personnel prior to a road accident in August 2019 that saw a teenage motorcyclist killed by one of its employees. At the end of a four-day inquiry on Thursday, June 13, 2024, Northamptonshire coroner Anne Pember recorded the death of 19-year-old Harry Dunn as being as a result of “injuries sustained during a head-on collision” with a car being driven on the wrong side of the road. The driver Anne Sacoolas had admitted to police two months after the accident that she “drove like an American.” (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File) British coroner criticizes US government over death of teen motorcyclist Harry Dunn in 2019 “Today, I have spoken about what we need to do to secure the border,” Biden said at the June 4 event at the White House. “In the weeks ahead — and I mean the weeks ahead — I will speak to how we can make our immigration system more fair and more just.” To protect the spouses of Americans, the administration is expected to use a process called “parole-in-place.” It not only offers deportation protections and work permits to qualifying immigrants but also removes a legal obstacle that prevents them from getting on a path to a green card, and eventually, U.S. citizenship. ADVERTISEMENT That power has already been used for other groups of immigrants, such as members of the U.S. military or their family members who lack legal status. For Biden’s actions, White House officials were narrowing in on a plan that would offer parole in place for spouses of Americans who have been here for at least five or 10 years, according to the people briefed on the deliberations. The people were granted anonymity to discuss internal White House deliberations. The immigrant advocacy group FWD.us estimates that there are roughly 1.1 million immigrants without legal status married to Americans. However, depending on how the Biden administration writes the proposal, the actual universe of people who could qualify for the president’s plan is likely far smaller. Advocates were also lobbying the White House to include benefits for immigrants lacking legal status who provide caregiving roles for American family members, according to two of the people familiar with the discussions, although that provision was seen as far less likely to be enacted for now. Allowing such caregivers to apply for a so-called “cancellation of removal” would affect immigrants like family members of Americans who have specific needs or disabilities. ADVERTISEMENT Amid these deliberations, the White House has invited lawmakers to an event Tuesday afternoon to celebrate the 12th anniversary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, according to a person familiar with the event. The initiative was created June 15, 2012, by then-President Barack Obama to protect young immigrants who lacked legal status, often known as “dreamers.” Although House lawmakers will be away from Washington on a recess, White House officials say it will be worthwhile to make it to the event. “We’re expecting positive news,” said Rep. Nanette Barragán, the chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, a Democratic group that has advocated for the White House to take action to provide relief for immigrants. “I think it just says that we value our immigrants and those people who are part of the American fabric,” she said. For more information, visit us at https://www.beverlyhillsimmigrationlaw.com/.