US President Donald Trump on Thursday extended a pair of immigration bans that block many “green card” applicants and temporary foreign workers from entering the country, measures he says are needed to protect US workers amid the pandemic-battered economy.
The bans, which were issued in April and June, were set to expire on Dec. 31, but will be extended until March 31, 2021, the latest in a series of last-gasp immigration moves by the outgoing Trump administration. A broad range of businesses oppose the ban on certain foreign workers.
President-elect Joe Biden, who takes office on Jan. 20, has criticized the restrictions, but has not yet said whether he would immediately reverse them. Trump issued the bans in the form of presidential proclamations that could be swiftly undone.
At least 20 million people remain on unemployment benefits in the United States as the novel coronavirus continues to spread nationwide.
The Huffington Post recently wrote in a note that the US president had used the outbreak of the coronavirus in the country as an excuse to advance the immigration agenda.
MA/PR
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