 |
|
A new report says the asylum denial rate rose to 94% earlier this year as the Trump administration carries out his promise of mass deportations and transforms immigration courts nationwide.
That figure comes from the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, or TRAC, the nonpartisan research center at Syracuse University. TRAC obtains and analyzes federal records via Freedom of Information Act requests.
Asylum is a form of protection in the U.S., granted to people fleeing persecution based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion or by virtue of being part of a “particular social group.”
TRAC’s latest data shows in June, just 771 people were granted asylum nationwide and 94% of all asylum cases were denied. Asylum denials have steadily climbed for years, according to TRAC, starting under President Joe Biden and rising to nearly 70% by the end of his term.
TRAC attributed the latest spike in denials to President Donald Trump’s remaking of immigration courts, citing records showing 279 immigration judges have been fired or resigned since fall 2024, some pointing to political pressure to rule a certain way.
Immigration courts fall under the Executive Office for Immigration Review, which is part of the Department of Justice. A DOJ spokesperson said in a statement on TRAC’s findings in part, “The Biden Administration allowed millions of unvetted migrants into our communities.”
|
|
|
|
