Kansas AG files brief to keep stay-in-Mexico policy in place

TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) – Kansas’ attorney general has filed a new brief to block the Biden administration’s Stay in Mexico policy strike.

Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said on Friday, April 15, he asked the United States Supreme Court to require President Joe Biden’s administration to keep the federal “Stay in Mexico” policy in place. He said the policy restricted the movement of migrants across the US southern border.

AG Schmidt said he joined 18 other states this week to submit a brief in support of a lower court ruling that would prevent the federal government from arbitrarily removing the policy that has been in place since January 2019.

“The failed policies of the Biden administration have fueled a humanitarian and security crisis on our nation’s southern border that affects every state, including Kansas,” Schmidt said. “We continue to fight back by asking the courts to require the administration to at least obey the law as it continues its misguided policies.”

In August 2021, Schmidt said a federal district court in Texas ruled that the Biden administration failed to comply with federal law when it attempted the Trump-era policy that required plaintiffs to asylum from third world countries to stay in Mexico pending an official procedure.

Schmidt noted that the district court decision reinstated the policy, however, the Biden administration appealed that decision. In addition, he said the United States Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit required the federal government to maintain the current policy while the legal proceedings continue.

The AG said the Stay in Mexico Policy – ​​or Migrant Protection Protocols – requires immigrants without clear permission to cross the border into the United States to be detained or remain in Mexico while their cases are reviewed. .

Schmidt also noted that federal agencies are legally required to properly consider the consequences of their actions on states and residents before policy changes are made. He said that thought didn’t happen until the Department of Homeland Security was ordered to ignore the policy in January 2021.

Earlier in 2022, Schmidt said he and other state attorneys general traveled to the Lone Star State to meet with Gov. Greg Abbott and other officials to discuss the border crisis — including understood the effectiveness of the policy of staying in Mexico. He said the further weakening of border policies invites chaos and criminal elements that affect Kansas and other states.

Earlier this week, Schmidt said he join a lawsuit which aims to keep the Title 42 public health policy in place. He said the policy allows border authorities to turn back migrants due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

To read a full copy of the amicus brief filed in Biden versus Texas, Click on HERE.

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