TEXAS — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton this week announced his third lawsuit against the Biden administration. This one calls on the president to reinstate Migrant Protection Protocols, better known as the “remain in Mexico" policy.

What You Need To Know

  • Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sues Biden administration again 

  • Lawsuit seeks reinstatement of Trump-era "remain in Mexico" policy 

  • Policy kept asylum seekers in Mexico while their claims were being processed 

  • Critics said policy endangered migrants 

The policy, put in place by former President Donald Trump, forces migrants to remain in Mexico while their claims are being processed.

The lawsuit, which was filed jointly with Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt, says that doing away with the policy has burdened state and federal agencies tasked with defending the border.

“President Biden could immediately remedy the influx of crime pouring across our border by reinstating the Migrant Protection Protocols,” Paxton wrote in a news release. “Dangerous criminals are taking advantage of the lapse in law enforcement and it’s resulting in human trafficking, smuggling, a plethora of violent crimes, and a massive, unprecedented burden on state and federal programs for which taxpayers must foot the bill. We cannot allow this lawlessness to destroy our communities any longer. President Biden must act.”

Put in place by Trump in January 2019, MPP resulted in more than 70,000 asylum seekers enrolled in the program being sent back to Mexico.

Critics described it as a reckless and inhumane program that subjected people to kidnapping, extortion and violence.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.