Biden Administration To Announce New Economic Sanctions On Nicaragua

US President Joe Biden is expected to sign an executive order today to significantly expand Trump-era sanctions on the regime of Nicaragua's President, Daniel Ortega.

• According to AP, the measures to be announced with the Treasury Department will make it illegal for Americans to do business with Nicaragua’s gold industry and lay the groundwork for the US to restrict investment and trade with Nicaragua.
• The actions could have implications for the US midterm elections next month. Any action taken against Ortega's economic base is likely to exacerbate the number of Nicaraguans seeking refuge in the US.
• Republican strategists have had success highlighting an alleged inability of the Biden administration to limit the flow of migrants on the southern border.
• This year, US border agents have encountered Nicaraguans 134,000 times at the southwest border a figure three times higher than last year.
• A recent Monmouth University poll found that 34% of voters consider the immigration as "extremely important" issue.