Biden officially announces order targeting illegal immigration ahead of November election

President Joe Biden on Tuesday announced an executive order that would prevent illegal immigrants from receiving asylum in the United States. 

An announcement from the White House blames Republicans in Congress for not acting to secure the border, and states that Biden, whose administration has presided over record illegal immigration numbers, has acted.

The order will bar illegal immigrants from receiving asylum when there are high levels of encounters at the Southern Border. This will "make it easier for immigration officers to remove those without a lawful basis to remain and reduce the burden on our Border Patrol agents," the White House said.

The White House did not specify what level illegal immigration must be at for the restrictions to go into effect, but NBC News reported that it would be 2,500 people a day. The border would reopen once that number falls to 1,500 encounters a day. 

Conservatives, including former President Donald Trump's presidential campaign, are criticizing the executive order.

Trump campaign national press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the order is a plan for "mass amnesty."

Even if 2,500 people are allowed to cross the southern border a day, it still does not address the problems at the northern border, which has also seen record numbers of illegal immigrant encounters under Biden.

Additionally, Biden's new plan would still allow more than 900,000 illegal immigrants into the United States every year, so long as 2,500 people are allowed to cross every day. That number may be even higher, as it includes exceptions, such as those for unaccompanied children.

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