Mullin v. Al Otro Lado · ¶116

Next, the majority fixates on the preposition “in” and surmises that, had Congress intended to include those who reached the border but have not yet crossed, it would have referred to noncitizens who “‘arriv[e] at,’” “‘reac[h],’” or are “‘at a land border or port of entry.’” Ante, at 10 (emphasis deleted). Other nearby provisions, however, demonstrate that Congress uses the phrase “arrives at” interchangeably with “arrives in” to describe this category of “arriving aliens.” For instance, §1231(b)(1)(A), which governs the removal of arriving aliens, uses the terms interchangeably in the same sentence. It specifies that a noncitizen “who arrives at the United States” and is removed upon arrival shall be returned to the country in which the noncitizen “boarded the vessel or aircraft on which the alien arrived in the United States.” That provision refers to the same person in both…

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