President Joe Biden has acknowledged that migrants entering the U.S. illegally and seeking asylum may have to wait up to seven years for their cases to be heard.
This statement sheds light on the current backlog facing the U.S. immigration system. According to Biden, migrants who cross the border and apply for asylum are initially unable to meet with an asylum officer. Instead, they are given a bracelet, released into the country, and told to return in seven years for their case hearing. This admission highlights the challenges and delays within the immigration process, impacting both the migrants and the overall system.
“Right now, you can come — they come through the border on asylum, they don’t — not able to see an asylum officer. They get a bracelet, and they get put in the country and they get — come — say, “Come back in seven years. Come back in seven years when we’re able to hear your case,” the president said.