Joe Biden reportedly plans to pay $ 450,000 to every migrant who has been separated from their family | Local News

According to the Wall Street Journal, the Democratic administration is in discussions for the payment of significant financial compensation to the families of illegal migrants separated during the mandate of Donald Trump.

New controversy across the Atlantic around the management of illegal migrants: wanting to break with Donald Trump’s policy on the subject, the Biden administration would consider financially compensating the families of migrants separated by the border. According to Wall Street Journal, which quotes sources familiar with the matter, each member of a family having been separated could receive the sum of 450,000 dollars (approximately 390,000 euros). A hypothesis that aroused strong reactions from elected Republicans.

These payments are part of the settlement of several lawsuits filed on behalf of migrants separated from their families following the “zero tolerance” policy in force under President Donald Trump: parents who illegally crossed the American border had been deported. , while their children remained in the United States. The applicants pleaded lasting psychological trauma, and allege that some of the children suffered from various ailments – including malnutrition, heat exhaustion and being held in freezing rooms with little medical attention. The compensation paid could amount to nearly a million dollars per family, even if “the final figures could change”, according to the report. Wall Street Journal.

The American daily reports that the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) – which represents the families in one of the lawsuits – has identified around 5,500 children separated from their parents during Donald Trump’s tenure, based on figures which were provided to him by the government. The number of families eligible for compensation should however be lower, as so far only 940 claims have been filed.

The deputy director of the ACLU spoke about the situation in these terms: “President Biden has recognized that the policy of separation of families is a historic moral stain on our nation that must be fully repaired. […] This remedy must include not only significant monetary compensation, but also a possibility of remaining in the country. “

Amounts deemed excessive

As the Wall Street Journal, some US government attorneys considered the payments to be excessive for people who broke the law by crossing the border, and one of them allegedly even threatened to remove his name from the case because of his disagreement with the amounts invoked.

More than the principle of paying compensation to migrants, it is the importance of the payments that also aroused the stir of elected Republicans in Congress. The leader of the latter in the House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, considered that it was “sheer madness”. “The Biden administration appears to be considering paying $ 450,000 to illegal immigrants who have deliberately broken the law. It’s a slap in the face for our law-abiding citizens who get up in the morning, go to work and pay their taxes, ”he said.

“Make no mistake: Business will explode for drug cartels and human traffickers if the Biden administration follows through on its plan to pay illegal immigrants up to $ 450,000. Their new advertising slogan: Enter the United States illegally, the Democrats will pay you with taxpayers’ money, ”he said indignantly in another message posted on Twitter.

Texas Representative and former Navy Seals member Dan Crenshaw said, “Biden wants to pay illegal immigrants $ 450,000 for their suffering as they break our laws. To put it in perspective, if a soldier is killed in operation, his family receives an insurance payment of $ 400,000. I’ll let you think about it. “

Utah Representative Chris Stewart for his part was outraged at the difference in treatment that would be practiced by the Democratic President between American citizens – who are currently suffering from persistent price hikes – and migrants: “The President Biden’s America: Americans Having Trouble? Lower your expectations. Do illegal immigrants find it difficult? Here is $ 450,000 … “