As our policy expert Laurence Benenson told Paul J. Weber of the Associated Press, immigration policy is a core responsibility of the federal government — as the Supreme Court recently affirmed. "There is a recognition that we don’t want to open the flood gates to having states set 50 different immigration enforcement policies," Benenson said. 

Weber notes that the order raises several other questions, including how widely and under what circumstances it will be employed and whether and how state forces have been trained to detain and transport migrants. 

Policy solutions to create a more orderly border already exist. But it’s up to Congress and the Biden administration to enact them. As we noted yesterday, Abbott’s order is likely to face court challenges. 

Speaking of Abbott, the Justice Department is now investigating his multibillion-dollar Operation Lone Star initiative for possible civil rights violations, Perla Trevizo reports in a story co-published by The Texas Tribune and ProPublica. It’s the latest in a raft of problems that have emerged with the initiative in place.  

Welcome to Friday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Dan Gordon, the Forum’s strategic communications VP. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected].  

STATE CONVERSATIONS — In South Carolina and Ohio, business leaders and others are calling for meaningful immigration reforms. Down South, a conversation this week focused on immigrants brought to the U.S. as children, Stephen Pastis reports in The State. "We look to South Carolina Sens. Tim Scott and Lindsey Graham to help lead the way in finding solutions for our ’Dreamers,’ their communities and their employers," said Yahel Flores, a DACA recipient and the Carolinas state director of the American Business Immigration Coalition. Meanwhile, in Ohio, faith and business leaders came together Thursday to talk immigration solutions including the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, Tyler Thompson reports for WOSU.  

LABOR BOOST — USCIS is working to issue 280,000 work-based green cards before the current fiscal year ends Sept. 30, which could help address labor shortages, Andrew Kreighbaum reports in Bloomberg Law. Last year, more than 66,000 employment-based green cards went unused because of pandemic-related delays and capacity limits. "When you move people from temporary visas to green cards, you can be sure that the American economy and working Americans will benefit," said Bruce Morrison, a former House Judiciary immigration subcommittee chair. Across the pond, Germany is addressing labor shortages by allowing an estimated 130,000 resident foreigners to regularize their immigration status, creating incentives for skilled workers to enter the country and work, per Reuters. 

CORPORATE LEADERSHIP — At the GE Appliances factory in Louisville, Kentucky, a big hiring push in the next 18 months has a "secret weapon": a new program to recruit Afghans, other refugees, and people learning English, Amy Feldman reports in Forbes. Forty Afghans have been hired for manufacturing jobs at the plant since the program started in February, including Edris Akseer. The former translator for the U.S. Army in Afghanistan has become the plant’s "go-to person," helping translate for Afghans in need of support. Said Yaron Schwartz, associate director of the nonprofit Tent, "When companies invest in refugees, refugees are very loyal and grateful for the work opportunity and often stay at the company and often take on leadership roles."  

More local stories: 

• A $20,688 grant from the Indiana Department of Education will be used to support Afghan students at Fort Wayne Community Schools with services "including interpreters for the students and their families as well as supplemental instructional materials." (Ashley Sloboda, The Journal Gazette) 
• New York’s Cazenovia College partnered with Cazenovia Welcomes Refugees (CWR) and InterFaith Works to turn a college-owned building once used for administrative offices and storage into a home for an Afghan family. Reconstructing the building took nine months. (Daily Sentinel) 

TPS DEADLINE — The Biden administration has until Monday to decide whether to extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Venezuelans, reports Joe Gorchow of CBS Miami. Members of the Florida legislature sent a letter this week to the Biden administration, urging it to do so and "continue to provide the much-needed support and safety to displaced Venezuelans seeking a better life." Said Adelys Ferro, executive director of the Venezuelan American Caucus, about her home country: "You are living in extreme poverty … No food.  No money.  If you get sick, you are dead." For more on TPS for Venezuelans, see Sabrina Rodríguez’s piece in POLITICO. 

BILL PROVISIONS — Caroline Simon of Roll Call follows up on several immigration-related amendments to the fiscal 2023 defense authorization bill, which could get a vote next week. Among them is a measure to protect so-called "Documented Dreamers" that has had bipartisan support in the past. Other amendments would streamline the application process for Special Immigrant Visas for Afghans, exempt visa holders with advanced STEM degrees who are working in national security from visa limits, and more. 

Thanks for reading, 

Dan