There are still some steps that must be taken before the United States' migrant asylum pact with Guatemala is fully implemented, but once that happens, it will be a "breakthrough" in helping stem the numbers of illegal immigrants crossing the U.S. border, Ken Cuccinelli, the acting director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, said Tuesday.
"We already have statutory authority to enter into the so-called third-party agreements, safe thirds, but they have to get legislative approval," Cuccinelli told Fox News' "Fox and Friends." "This is a tremendous international relations breakthrough and it will be a game-changer once we are able to fully implement it, much like the remain in Mexico policy has been a tremendous help."
Meanwhile, Attorney General William Barr Monday ruled that migrants who claim they are being persecuted, based on threats against a family member, will not be enough to be granted asylum in the United States, a finding that Cuccinelli said he believes was well-thought-out.
"It says that unlike religious persecution or political persecution of family, and because you're a member by yourself, only in extremely rare cases will qualify you for asylum," said Cuccinelli, noting that a person in that situation can often move somewhere else safe in their own country.
He claimed the threat category was "dramatically expanded" during President Barack Obama's administration, and all Barr is doing is "getting back" to a law that was practiced for a long time.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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