A federal judge on Friday hinted he will likely invalidate the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program in the future -- but for now the program can continue to operate.
The ruling was an unexpected, albeit temporary, reprieve for the program, which President Donald Trump opted to end almost exactly a year ago.
Texas-based District Judge Andrew Hanen wrote Friday that he believes DACA is likely illegal and ultimately will fail to survive a challenge before his court. DACA is an Obama-era program that protects young undocumented immigrants who came to the US as children from deportation.
He said the popularity of the program was not relevant to whether it had been legally created -- the crux of the challenge to it.
"DACA is a popular program and one that Conress should consider saving," Hanen wrote. Nevertheless, "this court will not succumb to the temptation to set aside legal principles and to substitute its judgment in lieu of legislative action. If the nation truly wants to have a DACA program, it is up to Congress to say so."
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who led the challenge to DACA, hailed the ruling in a statement, despite it being an interim loss in court.
"We're now very confident that DACA will soon meet the same fate as the Obama-era Deferred Action for Parents of Americans program, which the courts blocked after I led another state coalition challenging its constitutionality," Paxton said. "Our lawsuit is vital to restoring the rule of law to our nation's immigration system."
Hanen's ruling Friday defuses the threat to DACA for some time. In a separate order, Hanen took the unusual step of making it possible to appeal his denial of an immediate halt to the program, and gave the parties three weeks to figure out next steps before the case moves to its next phase.
https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/31/polit...ues/index.html
Last edited by PhelonOne87; 08-31-2018 at 05:05 PM..