Migration News 

Factbox: What Biden plans to do next on refugees, separated families and regional migration
Ted Hesson and Kristina Cooke, Reuters 
U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to issue executive orders on asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border, refugee resettlement and the reunification of migrant families, according to a Biden transition team memo shared with lawmakers and recent comments by an administration official. The orders had been planned for Friday, according to the memo and people familiar with discussions. But the White House has now pushed back the time line and it remains unclear when it will take place.

First lady Jill Biden expected to take active role in immigrant family reunification
By Jim Acosta, Kate Bennett and Priscilla Alvarez, CNN
The Biden administration's planned task force aimed at reuniting children who were separated from their parents at the border under the Trump-era enforcement policies will include input from first lady Jill Biden, according to three sources familiar with the planning. Biden is tasking her East Wing with taking an active role in the reunification project. Her interest in the task force could offer something of a stark contrast with former first lady Melania Trump.

Trump Had A Mandate To Target All Undocumented Immigrants For Arrest. ICE Has A New Plan To Change That.
Hamed Aleaziz, BuzzFeed News 
Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials have drawn up guidance to direct officers to focus primarily on certain groups of immigrants, such as those suspected of being a national security threat, and require high-level approval for street operations as part of a draft memo obtained by BuzzFeed News that, if implemented, would likely lead to a significant drop in arrests. The draft interim guidance was authored by acting ICE Director Tae Johnson and applies to all decisions the agency makes in the US, including detaining or arresting undocumented immigrants. It includes a section on implementing a 100-day deportation moratorium, but that plan was blocked by a federal judge in Texas on Tuesday. The judge’s order, however, did not stop the Biden administration from moving forward with changing ICE’s arrest priorities.

Durbin, Graham teaming up on immigration bill
Jordain Carney, The Hill 
Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) are introducing DREAM Act legislation next week, as senators look for a long elusive immigration deal. Durbin told reporters on Thursday that it would be the starting base for broader negotiations within the Judiciary Committee and the Senate. 

Worth a Read 

Broken by Trump, US refugee program aims to return stronger
AP 

Woman who lived at Chicago church for years goes home — for 3 days — then returns after judge bars enforcement of Biden deportation moratorium
Chicago Tribune

Once maligned, immigrants deemed the pandemic’s ‘essential workers’ may find a citizenship path
The Dallas Morning News 

Lives Derailed
The New York Times 

An equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccine must include noncitizens
The Hill 

Biden’s immigration moves could help heal a nation
Al Jazeera 

'They Didn't Listen to Us': ICE Detainee Who Waged Hunger Strikes for COVID-19 Protections Gets Virus
KQED