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Joe Biden has formally reversed a series of executive actions undertaken by Donald Trump, including a proclamation that barred many green card applicants from entering the United States.
Trump issued the ban last year, saying it was necessary to protect U.S. workers amid high unemployment due to the coronavirus pandemic. Biden rejected this reasoning in a proclamation in which the visa ban was revoked. The president said it had prevented families from reuniting in the United States and harming U.S. businesses.
Other actions the president has undone include one that sought to slash the funding of several cities, which Trump saw as “lawless” and “anarchist jurisdictions,” and another order that federal buildings in a classic aesthetics must design.
The turnaround comes as the new president wants to move forward with his own agenda and undo important aspects of the legacy of his predecessor. Since taking office last month, Biden has revoked dozens of Trump orders and issued dozens more of his own.
Advocates for immigrants have in recent weeks insisted that he lift the visa ban, which would expire on March 31. Praying still allows a ban on most foreign temporary workers.
Curtis Morrison, an immigration attorney in California who represents people who are under the ban, said Biden will now have to deal with a growing backlog of applications that have been held for months because the pandemic closed most visa processing by the state department. The process could potentially take years, he said.
“This is a backlog that Trump has created,” Morrison said. “He broke the immigration system.”
The latest recall campaign has addressed a pack of bags, including a few that Trump signed in his last months in office.
Trump issued a memorandum in September seeking to identify municipal governments that allow “anarchy, violence and destruction in American cities.” The memorandum follows protests over the death of George Floyd by Minneapolis police. The Department of Justice has identified New York, Portland, Oregon and Seattle as three cities that could reduce federal funding.
Those cities, in turn, have filed a lawsuit to invalidate the designation and thwart the Trump administration’s efforts to withhold federal dollars.
Seattle City Attorney Pete Holmes welcomed Biden’s recall, saying he was “glad this nonsense was removed from the decks”.
Another reverse order included one issued by Trump in his dwindling days, requiring federal buildings to return to a more classical architectural style. The memorandum added that architects should look to ‘America’s beloved historic buildings’ such as the White House, the American Capitol, the Supreme Court, the Department of the Treasury and the Lincoln Memorial for inspiration.
Biden also revoked a 2018 order urging government chiefs in government to review welfare programs – such as food stamps, Medicaid and housing assistance – and strengthen the work requirements for certain recipients.