NEGATIVE Immigration 118th Congress

H.R.2 Secure the Border Act

Secure the Border Act — restricts asylum claims, mandates E-Verify for employers, resumes border wall construction (118th Congress)

View on Congress.gov

Legal & Constitutional Grounding

The 1951 Refugee Convention prohibits returning refugees to persecution; the bill restricts asylum protections.

1951 Refugee Convention, Art. 33 (non-refoulement) — prohibits return of refugees to territories where their life or freedom would be threatened; binding on the U.S. via the 1967 Protocol

1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees — removes geographic/temporal limits of 1951 Convention; U.S. acceded in 1968
8 U.S.C. § 1158 — codifies asylum right in U.S. law consistent with Convention obligations

Restricts asylum claims, mandates E-Verify, and resumes border wall construction. The bill would effectively eliminate asylum protections inconsistent with the 1951 Refugee Convention and 1967 Protocol.