美国国家公共电台 NPR--The number of Venezuelan migrants attempting to get into the U.S. is soaring

The number of Venezuelan migrants attempting to get into the U.S. is soaring

Transcript¹

The Biden administration says it will immediately begin returning Venezuelan migrants who cross the border illegally to Mexico, while also creating a narrow legal pathway for some who can qualify.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

The Biden administration says it will begin expelling Venezuelans who cross the southern border illegally.

A MARTINEZ, HOST:

The number of Venezuelans making the dangerous journey to the southern border is soaring. Migrants are fleeing violence and insecurity in the face of economic collapse² in their country. There is still a legal pathway, though, but it's narrow and whoever applies needs to have financial sponsors in the U.S. The new policy also requires Mexico to continue its parallel effort to take back Venezuelans who entered illegally.

FADEL: NPR's Joel Rose covers immigration for the network and joins us now. Hi, Joel.

JOEL ROSE, BYLINE³: Hi, Leila.

FADEL: So, Joel, why is the administration doing this now?

ROSE: Well, the Biden administration wants to bring down the record numbers of Venezuelan migrants who've been arriving at the southern border this year. Venezuela's economy has been falling apart under authoritarian⁴ leader Nicolas Maduro and the impact of U.S. sanctions. The U.N. says more than six million Venezuelans have left the country in recent years. Most have resettled elsewhere in Latin America, but a growing number are making the journey to the U.S., many of them crossing on foot through the infamous⁵ Darien Gap jungle in Panama. More than 150,000 have crossed the U.S. border in the last fiscal⁶ year, including 25,000 in August alone. And that's putting a strain on immigration authorities at the border, and it's prompting mounting criticism from Republican governors, who've been sending thousands of these migrants north in buses to cities run by Democratic mayors.

FADEL: So what's the Biden administration's approach?

ROSE: It's part carrot and part stick. The administration says it will immediately begin expelling Venezuelan migrants who illegally cross the U.S. border and returning them to Mexico, which is a big change because previously⁸ the administration could not expel those migrants under the pandemic border restrictions⁹ known as Title 42, because Mexico had refused to take them in. That's the stick. The carrot is that the U.S. will create a new legal pathway for up to 24,000 Venezuelan migrants who can meet the eligibility¹⁰ requirements. It's modeled on a program for admitting Ukrainian refugees earlier in the year. One requirement under this new program is that Venezuelan migrants will have to show they have not crossed the border illegally. They have to apply from abroad before they fly here. And they will have to show that they have a financial sponsor who's already in the U.S., which is not, you know, going to be easy for many of them.

FADEL: Right.

ROSE: Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said he wants to make clear that there is a lawful¹¹ and orderly way for Venezuelans to come to the U.S. and that it is, quote, "the only way."

FADEL: Now, Biden is under a lot of pressure to get border crossings down. With midterm elections coming up, is this going to help him in the midterms?

ROSE: It might, but, you know, there are some major obstacles. For one thing, Venezuelan migrants are still, you know, just a small fraction of all migrant crossings. And another obstacle is that relatively¹² few Venezuelans are going to qualify for this new legal pathway. Many of the migrants crossing this year, you know, simply don't have family or community connections already in the U.S. who could sponsor them. And that's a big difference between Venezuelans and many other migrants who've come before. And, you know, many of these migrants may still decide to just take their chances at the border.

FADEL: What does Mexico have to say about all this?

ROSE: The U.S. and Mexico announced this agreement together, but their respective press releases emphasized very different things. The Mexican government emphasized that the U.S. will be giving out more than 60,000 additional seasonal¹³ U.S. work visas for folks from Mexico and Central America. No one is publicly saying that there's a quid pro⁷ quo here, but the U.S., you know, can only expel these migrants under Title 42 if Mexico agrees to take them.

FADEL: NPR's Joel Rose, thank you for your time.

ROSE: You're welcome.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 authoritarian   

n./adj.专制(的)，专制主义者，独裁主义者

参考例句：

• Foreign diplomats suspect him of authoritarian tendencies.各国外交官怀疑他有着独裁主义倾向。
• The authoritarian policy wasn't proved to be a success.独裁主义的政策证明并不成功。

5 infamous   

adj.声名狼藉的，臭名昭著的，邪恶的

参考例句：

• He was infamous for his anti-feminist attitudes.他因反对女性主义而声名狼藉。
• I was shocked by her infamous behaviour.她的无耻行径令我震惊。

6 fiscal   

adj.财政的，会计的，国库的，国库岁入的

参考例句：

• The increase of taxation is an important fiscal policy.增税是一项重要的财政政策。
• The government has two basic strategies of fiscal policy available.政府有两个可行的财政政策基本战略。

7 pro   

n.赞成，赞成的意见，赞成者

参考例句：

• The two debating teams argued the question pro and con.辩论的两组从赞成与反对两方面辩这一问题。
• Are you pro or con nuclear disarmament?你是赞成还是反对核裁军？

8 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

9 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

10 eligibility   

n.合格，资格

参考例句：

• What are the eligibility requirements? 病人被选参加试验的要求是什么？ 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 回顾与展望
• Eligibility for HINARI access is based on gross national income (GNI). 进入HINARI获取计划是依据国民总收入来评定的。

11 lawful   

adj.法律许可的，守法的，合法的

参考例句：

• It is not lawful to park in front of a hydrant.在消火栓前停车是不合法的。
• We don't recognised him to be the lawful heir.我们不承认他为合法继承人。

12 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

13 seasonal   

adj.季节的，季节性的

参考例句：

• The town relies on the seasonal tourist industry for jobs.这个城镇依靠季节性旅游业提供就业机会。
• The hors d'oeuvre is seasonal vegetables.餐前小吃是应时蔬菜。