Biden, the Democratic Party candidate, made the promise at his last debate with his Republican challenger and incumbent President Donald Trump, on Thursday night.

“Within 100 days I am going to send to the U.S. Congress a pathway to citizenship for over 11 million undocumented people and all of those so-called Dreamers.

“They are going to be immediately certified again to be able to stay in this country and put on the path to citizenship.

“The idea that they are being sent home by this guy [Trump], and they want to do that, is that they are going to a country they have never seen before,” he said.

Noting the contributions of undocumented immigrants to the development of America, Biden said the country owed them.

According to him, no fewer than 20,000 of them are serving as first responders during the COVID-19 crisis, saving lives.

Responding, Trump said Biden had eight years as Vice President to do what he promised but failed, and rather built “cages“ to keep children in.

The Trump administration has been widely criticised for its policy of forcefully separating children from their undocumented immigrant parents, especially at the U.S. border with Mexico.

No fewer than 4,000 kids were separated and kept in detention facilities under the policy in late 2017.

Although, Trump has since reversed the zero-tolerance policy, the parents of 500 of those children cannot be located.

Asked how he planned to reunite the affected families, the president dodged the question and tried to turn the conversation to detention facilities.

He said the children were brought to the U.S. by bad people who used them to get into the country.

He argued that the “cages” in which the children were kept were built by the administration of former President Barack Obama under which Biden served as Vice President.

Biden fired back, noting that the children detained by Trump came over with their parents and that the policy was making the U.S. a “laughing stock”.

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“My heart goes out to all those who have lost a loved one in the violence,” Biden said in a statement made available on his official campaign website.

The statement came shortly after security agents allegedly opened fire on protesters on Tuesday night, in Lagos.

Biden encouraged the Nigerian government to engage in a good-faith dialogue with civil society.

This, according to him, is to address the “long-standing grievances and work together for a more just and inclusive Nigeria.”

“I urge President Buhari and the Nigerian military to cease the violent crackdown on protesters in Nigeria, which has already resulted in several deaths,” Biden said.

Our correspondent reports that in spite of the disbandment of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), protests against their brutality have continued in cities across the country.

The actual number of casualties and deaths from the incident on Tuesday night, in Lagos, is still unknown.

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The primetime event will take place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where the former U.S. vice president will answer questions from voters, and be moderated by anchor George Stephanopoulos, according to the broadcaster.

The announcement came hours after Trump said he would not take part in the second presidential debate following a format change making it virtual to protect the health and safety of those involved during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The format change has sickened the president and a growing number of individuals close to him.

Kate Bedingfield, Biden’s deputy campaign manager and communications director, said that the Democrat was prepared to attend the virtual matchup, originally designed to take place in the form of a town hall in Miami, Florida.

“But the President has refused, as Donald Trump clearly does not want to face questions from the voters about his failures on COVID and the economy,” Bedingfield said, adding that the campaign was hopeful that organisers would move the event to later this month.

Bill Stepien, Trump’s reelection campaign manager, defended the Republican presidential nominee’s remarks, arguing in a statement that “the American people should not be deprived of the chance to see the two candidates for president debate face to face two more times.”

Meanwhile, Stepien has urged the debate panel to reschedule the second face-off between Trump and Biden for Oct. 22 and the third for Oct. 29, both in-person.

The presidential opponents met for their first debate in the 2020 race in Cleveland, Ohio on Sept. 29, two days before the incumbent tested positive for COVID-19. Biden has undergone multiple tests since Trump’s diagnosis, with each one returning negative.

Trump returned to the White House on Monday, where he continues to receive treatment, after a three-day hospitalisation due to the coronavirus infection.

Speaking to Fox Business Thursday morning, the president said he was feeling “perfect,” while appearing eager to hit the campaign trail as Biden’s lead over him in national polls is widening.

“I think I’m better … to a point where I’d love to do a rally tonight. I wanted to do one last night,” Trump said, adding: “I feel perfect. There’s nothing wrong.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that individuals self-isolate for at least 10 days after the onset of symptoms from COVID-19, which has infected nearly 7.6 million people and killed more than 212,000 in the U.S.

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“I’m not going to do a virtual debate,” Trump, who’s recovering from COVID-19 at the White House, said in an interview with Fox Business.

“I’m not going to waste my time with a virtual debate. That’s not what debating is all about. You sit behind a computer and do a debate, that is ridiculous,” Trump said.

The Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) announced on Thursday morning that the second Trump-Biden encounter, scheduled for Oct. 15, “will take the form of a town meeting, in which the candidates would participate from separate remote locations.”

The town meeting participants and the moderator, it added, would be located at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts in Miami, Florida.

Bill Stepien, Trump’s campaign manager, said in a statement that “there is no need for this unilateral declaration,” referring to the change to the debate format.

“The safety of all involved can easily be achieved without canceling a chance for voters to see both candidates go head to head,” said Stepien, who also recently tested positive for COVID-19.

“We’ll pass on this sad excuse to bail out Joe Biden and do a rally instead,” Stepien said.

The presidential candidates met for their first debate in the race in Cleveland, Ohio on Sept. 29, two days before the incumbent tested positive for COVID-19. Biden has undergone multiple tests since Trump’s diagnosis, with each one returning negative.

The former vice president has said the second debate should not be held if his Republican opponent still has the virus.

Kate Bedingfield, Biden’s deputy campaign manager, said on Thursday that the Democrat intended to take part in the virtual debate next week.

“Vice President Biden looks forward to speaking directly to the American people and comparing his plan for bringing the country together and building back better with Donald Trump’s failed leadership on the coronavirus that has thrown the strong economy he inherited into the worst downturn since the Great Depression,” the spokesperson said in a statement.

Frank Fahrenkopf, head of the CPD, told CNN that the panel spoke with both campaigns “just before” it announced the decision to hold the Miami debate virtually, but did not consult with them about the decision.

Fahrenkopf said that the decision had the support of the Cleveland Clinic, the commission’s health advisers, while also acknowledging that it was fully within Trump’s right to decline to debate.

“There is no law requiring any presidential candidate to debate,” he explained, adding: “So it is up to every candidate to decide whether they want to debate or not.”

Trump returned to the White House on Monday, where he continues to receive COVID-19 treatment after a three-day hospitalisation.

Speaking to Fox Business on Thursday, the president said he was feeling “perfect,” while appearing eager to hit the campaign trail as Biden’s lead over him in national polls continues widening.

“I think I’m better to a point where I’d love to do a rally tonight. I wanted to do one last night.

“I feel perfect. There’s nothing wrong,” Trump said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that individuals self-isolate for at least 10 days after the onset of symptoms from COVID-19, which has infected more than 7.55 million people and killed nearly 212,000 in the U.S.

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The Commission on Presidential Debates had earlier announced that the second debate between Trump and Biden scheduled for Oct. 15 would now hold virtually.

In a statement, the commission said the decision was taken to “protect the health and safety of all involved with the second presidential debate.”

The announcement followed Trump’s diagnosis with COVID-19 on Oct. 1.

Reacting to the announcement, Trump said he would not participate in a virtual debate, saying the idea of sitting in front of a computer to debate was ridiculous.

Speaking to newsmen on Thursday morning before boarding a flight to Arizona for a campaign, Biden said he would follow the recommendations of the commission.

“We don’t know what the president is going to do, he changes his mind every second, so for me to comment on that now would be irresponsible.

“I’m going to follow the commission’s recommendations. If he goes off and he’s going to have a rally, I don’t know what I’ll do,” he said.

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