Projected President-elect Joe Biden and wife Jill Biden, Nov. 7, 2020. (AP/Andrew Harnik)
“I will end the Muslim ban on day one,” said Joe Biden.
By Josh Plank, World Israel News
Projected President-elect Joe Biden is not planning on wasting any time after taking office on January 20, at least not when it comes to reversing the policies of President Donald Trump.
On day one, Biden is expected to issue multiple executive orders, since pushing any major legislation through Congress could be a challenge with a Republican-controlled Senate.
Biden’s transition team has already launched a website and been given government-issued computers, iPhones, and 10,000 square feet of office space in Washington, D.C.
“On day one, we will rescind the un-American Muslim travel and refugee bans,” projected Vice President-elect Kamala Harris told the Arab American News last month, echoing a promise made by Biden in July.
Harris said the administration also plans to raise the annual refugee admissions target to 125,000.
“We will protect civil rights and root out systemic racism across our society, confronting discriminatory policies that target Arab Americans and cast entire communities under suspicion,” she said.
Harris said the administration will review “watchlist” and “no-fly list” processes to make sure that they are not discriminatory and to “remove names, when justified, from these lists.”
The Council on American–Islamic Relations (CAIR) applauded the Biden administration’s plans.
“We plan to join other American Muslim leaders and organizations in ensuring that the Biden administration fulfills these promises,” CAIR said in a statement congratulating Biden on his projected win.
Concerning the administration’s Israel policy, Harris said, “We will take immediate steps to restore economic and humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people, address the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza, reopen the U.S. consulate in East Jerusalem, and work to reopen the PLO [Palestine Liberation Organization] mission in Washington.”
Palestinian media reported early last week that the Palestinian Authority (PA) had already opened early communication channels with Biden through businessmen in the U.S.
Biden has pledged to rejoin the Paris climate accords by executive order, reverse Trump’s withdrawal from the World Health Organization, repeal the Republican-passed tax cuts from 2017, and send a bill to Congress to tighten gun control restrictions.
Biden also plans to push for a nationwide mask mandate and is expected to set up a coronavirus task force as early as Monday.
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