Biden infuriates progressives after denying entry to thousands blocked by Trump’s travel ban

The progressive left is really angry with President Biden over not fully nixing Trump’s ban that is still denying thousands entry into the United States from 13 mostly Muslim countries previously designated as terrorist strongholds.

Biden made a big show of reversing Trump’s travel ban on his first day as president but it has apparently not worked the way he had envisioned.

The Department of State made an announcement on Monday that most visa applicants who were denied under the travel ban can now resubmit their applications. But that mandate does not include “diversity visas.” They were intended to increase immigration from countries that don’t normally get many approved visas, such as Middle Eastern countries where terrorism is rampant.

Ned Price, who is a State Department spokesperson, noted in a statement that was released on Monday that the thousands of individuals who applied for “diversity visas” will still be prevented from getting them because “the deadlines for visa issuance in those fiscal years have expired.”

This incensed a number of progressive Congress members who demanded that Biden reverse the policy.

“The cycle of harm must be broken,” Squad member Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) tweeted. “This is unacceptable.”

Another Squad member, Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), agreed with Pressley and said the news was “infuriating.”

Biden called the travel ban a “stain on our national conscience.” He then proceeded to give the State Department 45 days to fix it. That does not seem to have happened because under the plan just announced, “diversity visa” recipients can now re-enter the lottery, but they have no way to reverse their denial that occurred under Trump’s travel ban. They would not be eligible for visas if they had applied between 2017 and 2020 and were denied because of the ban.

The American Civil Liberties Union angrily clapped back at the Biden administration, stating that the move would “cement Trump’s legacy of harm.”

“President Biden just dusted off Trump’s ‘CLOSED’ sign and locked the door behind him,” ACLU attorney Manar Waheed angrily declared in a statement. “This decision threatens to forever prevent thousands of Black and Brown immigrants who meet all of the legal requirements to immigrate to the United States from doing so, perpetuating the effects of the discriminatory ban.”

“Although Biden made the Muslim ban recession a day one priority, that alone is not enough. Today, he cemented Trump’s legacy of harm,” Waheed proclaimed.

Trump issued his executive order in January 2017. It limited entry into the United States by seven nations. It was expanded in February 2020 to include some African countries where terrorism was prevalent. This sparked accusations of racism.

The State Department noted that since December of 2017, over 40,000 people have been blocked from entering the country due to the ban.

In January 2020, approximately 75,000 immigrant visa cases were still pending at the National Visa Center. As of February 2021, that number has increased almost six-fold to approximately 473,000.

Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, who is the president of the nonprofit Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, stated to the Huffington Post: “We have to remember, first and foremost, these are individuals and families who were forced to remain separated from their loved ones, missing milestones, holidays, and every piece of what it means to be separated from your family. The least we can do is offer an opportunity for re-adjudication without prejudice, and streamline the application process.”

Reaction on Twitter from leftists was scathing:

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