Migration News 

U.S. to resume processing thousands of stalled visas for Afghans who aided Americans
Susannah George, The Washington Post 
The U.S. Embassy in Kabul will soon resume processing thousands of stalled special visa applications for Afghans who aided U.S. forces after halting visa interviews in March because of the pandemic. A State Department official said the U.S. Embassy in Kabul would begin “a phased resumption” of in-person interviews in February. The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity under rules imposed by the State Department, would not comment on how many visas the embassy expects to process. More than 7,000 special visas allocated to Afghans by Congress in 2020 went unissued, compared with about 5,000 the year before, according to State Department data. Nearly 19,000 visa applications were stuck in processing as of September 2019, according to a State Department audit last year, a number that was all but guaranteed to grow with the coronavirus disruptions.

DHS, Labor Pull Immigration Rules After Biden Orders Freeze
Jennifer Doherty, Law360
The Biden administration delayed asylum restrictions on Thursday and walked back rules revising aspects of the H-2A and H-1B programs, following a freeze on new regulations. In a pair of announcements Wednesday, the Office of Foreign Labor Certification said it had pulled the final H-2A rule, which would amend certification requirements for agricultural work to be performed by temporary foreign workers and enforcement of their employers' contractual obligations under the program. It also withdrew a request for comments on a new H-1B policy interpretation addressing which employers of H-1B visa holders should file labor certification applications, as the U.S. Department of Labor reassesses its stance on both.

Senate Republicans throw cold water on Biden's immigration proposal
Sahil Kapur, NBC News 
President Joe Biden's sweeping immigration plan ran into quick resistance from key Senate Republicans, including some who championed a similar effort eight years ago. Immigration activists widely praised the legislative proposal, but senior Senate aides in both parties expressed skepticism that it has a path, at least without major changes, to winning the 60 votes needed to defeat a filibuster, which means at least 10 GOP votes. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., a key figure in the "Gang of Eight" overhaul in 2013 that passed the Senate but died in the Republican-controlled House, called it a nonstarter. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said he doubts Biden's plan can pass, describing it as "to the left" of the 2013 legislation that he helped craft, citing fewer provisions to beef up border security.

Bad conduct, leering ‘jokes’ — immigration judges stay on bench
Tal Kopan, San Francisco Chronicle 
A Chronicle investigation revealed numerous similar instances of harassment or misconduct in the courts, and found a system that allows sexually inappropriate behavior to flourish.Interviews with dozens of attorneys across the country and current and former government officials, as well as internal documents obtained by The Chronicle, show the problems have festered for years. The Justice Department has long lacked a strong system for reporting and responding to sexual harassment and misconduct.

Biden wants to remove this controversial word from US laws
Catherine E. Shoichet, CNN 
It's just one small part of the sweeping immigration overhaul President Biden is pushing. But the symbolic significance is huge. Biden's proposed bill, if passed, would remove the word "alien" from US immigration laws, replacing it with the term "noncitizen. It's a deliberate step intended to recognize America as "a nation of immigrants," according to a summary of the bill released by the new administration.

Worth a Read 

Advocates Hail Biden’s First Executive Actions on Immigration
GBH News

When a Maryland couple opened their home to a Honduran mother and son, strangers became family
The Baltimore Sun 

Immigration reform will put Biden’s compromise chops to the test
The Washington Post 

Biden takes on a long-deferred overhaul of immigration
The Boston Globe 

Biden’s bold immigration plan would really put America first
The Washington Post