How the American asylum bureaucracy grew

History Professor Maria Cristina Garcia writes in this Wall Street Journal editorial that the policy makers who crafted the 1980 Refugee Act never imagined that within a generation the U.S. would be flooded with requests.

"A long-term solution on immigration is still needed—and any discussion has to start with a deeper understanding of the country’s history on the issues, as well as the circumstances of those seeking to enter the U.S.," Garcia writes. "Obscured in all the government statistics are asylum seekers from Central America. Unlike refugees, who are referred to the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program for resettlement in the U.S., asylum seekers make their way to the U.S. to plead their case."

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