Federal Judge Denies Obama’s Immigration Orders Request

A federal judge has denied a request to lift an injunction preventing President Obama’s immigration orders from going into effect. Judge Andrew Hanen is currently hearing a lawsuit regarding brought by 26 state attorney’s general seeking to block those immigration orders. Judge Hanen created the injunction in February while hearing the states’ cases. The judge rejected a request from the Justice Department seeking to lift the injunction, stating that he “remained convinced” that the President exceeded his authority when issuing the orders.

Immigration Orders Delay Deportations

The controversial immigration orders allowed undocumented immigrants who met special circumstances to delay their deportation hearings. The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program would protect those immigrants who had arrived in the U.S. illegally as children. The Deferred Action for Parental Accountability (DAPA) rule would serve those immigrants whose children were either native-born Americans or had become naturalized citizens. The immigration orders would allow nearly 5 million undocumented immigrants to delay their deportation procedures for three years and obtain work permits.

Judge: Immigration Orders Exceed Presidential Authority

Judge Hanen has largely sided with the attorneys general, most of them Republicans, who have stated that the President’s immigration orders are effectively making new law. According to the U.S. Constitution, only Congress can make new laws, while the President enforces those laws. Judge Hanen has stated that the President’s immigration orders created new programs, rather than enforcing current immigration law, and that those executive actions should be halted while the courts consider the case.

Judge Accuses DOJ Lawyers of Lying About Immigration Orders

Judge Hanen went further when he stated that lawyers for the Justice Department lied about the status of the immigration orders. The judge claimed some undocumented immigrants were benefiting from the programs, despite the fact that federal lawyers told him that the immigration orders were not yet activated. He wrote in his ruling that “the attorneys for the government misrepresented the facts” and called their conduct “unacceptable.”

Appeals Court Favors Immigration Orders

The day before Judge Hanen’s ruling, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled that the plaintiffs in another challenge to the President’s immigration orders lacked the legal standing to make such a challenge. The Appeals Court ruled that the plaintiffs were not harmed by the 2012 executive orders and had not “demonstrated the concrete and particularized injury” that the immigration orders would cause. Lawyers for the Obama Administration have requested that the Appeals Court overturn Judge Hanen’s injunction and allow the immigration orders to proceed as scheduled.

Source: New York Times

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