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June 23, 2014

Obama Admin to Increase Detention, Deportation in Face of Migrant Surge 
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The Obama administration is responding to the surge in child migrants
with increased detention and speedier deportations. Thousands of
children are being held in U.S. detention centers after fleeing violence
and poverty in Central America. The New York Times reports the White
House plans to open additional detention facilities and fast-track
immigration trials to allow for quicker deportation. Tracking devices
such as ankle bracelets will be deployed more widely to monitor
immigrants set to be deported. Immigration officers and judges will be
assigned on an emergency basis to the Rio Grande Valley in Texas, where
most of the crossings happen. More than 47,000 unaccompanied children
have been caught at the U.S. border since October. On Friday, Vice
President Joe Biden met with leaders from El Salvador, Guatemala and
Honduras to discuss the migrant crisis. Biden unveiled new funding of
$255 million for repatriation programs and efforts to tackle gang
violence in Central America.

 

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