President Joe Biden will veto House bill H.R. 2 if given the opportunity, the White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said this week.
H.R. 2, a measure designed to codify a number of former President Trump’s toughest border policies, will be put to a vote by House Republicans.
If the Senate adopts the proposal, Biden will have the chance to protect the southern border, at which millions of migrants are anticipated to cross after Title 42 is lifted.
The proposal, according to Jean-Pierre, will be doomed on arrival. “If the president were to be presented with H.R. 2 he would immediately veto it,” she said.
The veto threat was first made public by the White House this week.
According to a statement from the White House Office for Budget and Management, “although we appreciate Congress’ involvement on significant efforts toward tackling immigration and the difficulties at the border, this bill would only make things even worse, rather than better. This measure should be rejected because it accomplishes very little to really strengthen border security while doing quite a bit to violate the country’s essential beliefs and duties under international law.”
On the same day that Title 42, a Trump-era measure, is set to be repealed under Biden, H.R. 2 will be put to a vote in the House. Over the last three years, Title 42 has made it possible for federal immigration officers to swiftly send millions of unauthorized immigrants back to Mexico.
H.R. 2 would formalize a number of border security measures as Title 42 comes to an end, which includes the “Remain in Mexico” program, which requires migrants to request asylum in Mexico awaiting a U.S. Immigration Court hearing date.
The law would also stop taxpayer money from going to NGOs that assist migrants in becoming legal aliens and restart border wall building while allocating cash for increased border security.
