http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2...exas/76578428/

"The Supreme Court moved President Obama a step closer Tuesday to getting a final verdict before leaving office on his plan to protect more than 4 million undocumented immigrants from threatened deportation.
The justices turned down Texas' request for an additional month to respond to the Justice Department's request for a high court hearing, leaving open the chance for a spring showdown over the controversial executive action. Instead, they granted only eight days, demanding a response by Dec. 29. As a result, a decision on whether to hear the case could come in January, soon enough for oral arguments and a decision in the first half of 2016.
The timing is critical to both sides. If the justices take the case and rule in Obama's favor by June, the administration would have seven months to begin implementing the program before the president's term expires. But if the case is pushed to the court's next term, a decision would be unlikely before Obama is replaced -- possibly by a Republican who would end the program before it begins."