The Trump administration will enforce its controversial “public charge” rule that denies legal status to immigrants receiving public assistance after the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals last week lifted a nationwide injunction on the directive, reports CBS News.
Green card applicants who relied on social services as their primary means of financial support in the past can now be denied permanent residency under the rule. President Donald Trump announced an expansion of the “public charge” requirements in 2019 and the Department of Homeland Security implemented them in February 2020.
But a judge from the Southern District of New York in late July issued an injunction halting enforcement of the requirements, citing the coronavirus pandemic.
Litigation challenging the rule said immigrants might forgo use of available healthcare, housing, and food programs to the detriment of public health.
The term “public charge” means being an economic burden on the country. The term was introduced in the Immigration Act of 1882.
Acting Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Ken Cuccinelli recently told CBS News the policy promotes independence.
"That expectation in our law that legal immigrants who are going to stay here long-term can stand on their own two feet is a very long-standing not just tradition, but it's a long-standing legal requirement," Cuccinelli said.
"I can cite family history in my Italian family about people who were sponsors and making sure their sponsorees had jobs and those kinds of things. That's what we expect."
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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