The Biden administration recently announced a new policy that allows classified information to be used in immigration proceedings, NBC News reported.
The policy was announced by Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas in a May 9 memo, according to NBC News.
The change gives immigration judges and asylum officers more access to information that could help determine whether migrants have ties to terrorist organizations or pose a threat to public safety.
Previously, classified information only could be used "as a last resort" in immigration proceedings, according to a 2004 directive. The DHS secretary's approval was required to share such information when prosecutors were presenting a case for deportation in immigration court.
The new memo says approval can be given by the head of an agency, such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
The administration is determining whether it needs more space for more employees to store, print, and share the classified information, and whether security clearances are required.
"Over the last five years, we have seen a significant shift in the way transnational criminal organizations are becoming increasingly involved in the movement of people in our hemisphere, most concerningly people from the Eastern hemisphere," a DHS official cited by NBC News said.
"We have seen the terrorist threat landscape become much more complex over the last few years than it was right after 9/11."
The migrant crisis at the southern border remains a key issue as November's presidential election approaches.
Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy, the lead Democrat who negotiated a bipartisan border security bill introduced this year, said Sunday that Biden has "limited ability" to step up security at the U.S.-Mexico border via executive action.
Appearing on CBS News' "Face the Nation," Murphy said that U.S. courts would likely strike down sweeping action by Biden.
The May 9 policy change comes after NBC News reported in April that an Afghan migrant on the terrorist watchlist was released on bond by a Texas immigration judge after prosecutors from ICE withheld information about a possible connection to terrorism because the evidence was classified.
The 48-year-old man was arrested soon after the outlet's report.
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Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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