Chairman Nadler Announces House Judiciary Investigation into Trump Administration’s “Remain in Mexico” Policy

On the one-year anniversary of the introduction of the Keep Families Together Act, the House Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship announced that it will be investigating the Administration’s implementation of the “Remain in Mexico” immigration policy

Washington, D.C. — Today, House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), along with Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship Chair Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) and Subcommittee Members Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), Veronica Escobar (D-TX), Sylvia Garcia (D-TX), Joe Neguse (D-CO), Debbie Mucarsel-Powell (D-FL), and Lou Correa (D-CA), announced the start of an investigation into how the Administration’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy has morphed into a policy whereby refugees and asylum seekers are being kept in Mexico indefinitely and without due process or access to counsel. The announcement comes on the one-year anniversary of the introduction of the Keep Families Together Act, which came in response to the Trump Administration’s family separation policy that led to over five thousand children being separated from their families upon entry into the United States. The letter, sent to Acting Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Chad Wolf, demands the Department turn over any information regarding the development and execution of the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), also known as the “Remain in Mexico” policy, which threatens the health and safety of legitimate asylum seekers — including women, children, and families.

In their letter, the Members wrote, “The policy has nearly eliminated the already scarce due process protections available to asylum-seekers — such as access to counsel — further reducing the likelihood that legitimate asylum-seekers can obtain asylum. Moreover, MPP forces women, children, and families to remain in areas that the federal government recognizes as especially unsafe. As of today, there are 31 active travel advisories for Mexico, including 5 warnings in which the State Department explicitly advises Americans against travel. It is difficult to understand why this administration is sending children and families to areas where they will face certain harm.”