Biden’s Promises versus Policies

While campaigning for the 2020 presidential election, Biden had strong stances regarding immigration policy and promised to reverse many of Trump’s policies—but did he deliver?

By: Alessandra Benitez

One of the Trump administration’s most blatant attacks on human rights was how Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) treated detained immigrants. On the news, clip after clip showed the inhumane living conditions that they were subjected to. When the time came for the presidential race in 2020, one of Biden’s commitments was the reversal of Trump’s policies. He said that he would put protections in place for DACA recipients and enforce better training and transparency for ICE, among other seemingly progressive proposals. After over a year of campaigning, Biden won the election and got to work. He started out with what seemed like a lot of progress, signing executive action after executive action in his first 100 days in office. However, a sector he has failed to make a direct impact in is the issue of ICE and the rules they operate under. Images of border patrol agents attacking Haitian asylum seekers were recently released and caused outrage across the country. This is the same story we have been hearing over and over again. Many question Biden’s so-called “progress” regarding immigration. The fact is, Biden is not and has never been opposed to forceful immigration policies, regardless of the well-being of the people at the receiving end of them. During his time in the Obama administration, the number of deportations increased exponentially. The president is, above all else, a politician. While Biden may have promised many liberal reforms, he has the moderates’ opinions to worry about, especially since his actions are a reflection of the Democratic party and their priority is, and has always been, to secure votes.