Sessions says immigrants should apply for asylum at ports of entry, where many have been turned awa
Sessions says immigrants should apply for asylum at ports of entry, where many have been turned away
"They can go to our ports of entry if they want to claim asylum and they won't be arrested," he claimed.
Rebekah Entralgo
Jun 18, 2018, 1:39 pm
U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions addressed the National Sheriffs Association Monday morning in New Orleans, Louisiana, delivering a speech riddled with misinformation about the nations immigration policies, particularly as they relate to asylum claims.
Sessions defended the administrations policy of separating children from their parents at the border and alleged that if immigrants simply waited their turn at ports of entry to claim asylum, they would not be arrested.
We do have a policy of prosecuting adults who flout our laws to come here illegally instead of waiting their turn, claiming asylum at ports of entry. They can go to our ports of entry if they want to claim asylum and they wont be arrested, Sessions said. We cannot and will not encourage people to bring their children or other children to the country unlawfully by giving them immunity in the process.
He added, We will have a system where those who need to apply for asylum can do so and those who want to come to this country will apply to enter lawfully.
The process of claiming asylum, even at ports of entry, is not as easy as Sessions makes it out to be, and the new zero-tolerance policy he rolled out in April complicates things even further.
The Intercept reported Saturday that the number of asylum seekers being met by U.S. Customs & Border Protection agents (CBP) at ports of entry and turned away illegally could number in the thousands. Many of those being turned away, according to reporters, have followed the rules laid out in Sessions speech Monday, to no avail.
more...
https://thinkprogress.org/sessions-says-immigrants-should-apply-for-asylum-232e7c83044d/