Tag: DACA

Federal judge blocks new applications to DACA

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A federal judge in Texas blocked new applications for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in a ruling Friday, increasing pressure on Congress to find a legislative solution for undocumented immigrants who arrived in the country as minors.

Immigration advocates had been expecting the ruling for weeks, fearing Judge Andrew Hanen — a George W. Bush appointee who is known for his tough stance on immigration matters — could rule against the legality of the Obama-era program as a whole.

Hanen ruled that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) “with the creation of DACA and its continued operation.” Continue reading.

Judge orders Trump administration to restore DACA, accept new applicants

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A federal judge on Friday ordered the Trump administration to fully restore the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which protects undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as minors from deportation, scoring a key win for immigrant advocacy groups.

The ruling from U.S. District Judge Nicholas Garaufis, a Clinton appointee, restores the Obama-era program and also mandates that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) post a public notice by Monday saying it is accepting new applicants.

It would mark the first time since 2017 that the government has admitted new immigrants into the program. Continue reading.

Trump intends to renew effort to end DACA protections for young undocumented immigrants

Washington Post logoPresident Trump on Friday promised to renew his effort to end the Obama-era program that protects undocumented immigrants brought here as children from deportation, a day after the Supreme Court ruled to keep it in place.

In a morning tweet, Trump seized on the fact that the 5-4 decision did not address the merits of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA program, but rather said that the administration had not provided proper legal justification for ending it.

“The Supreme Court asked us to resubmit on DACA, nothing was lost or won. They ‘punted,’ much like in a football game (where hopefully they would stand for our great American Flag). We will be submitting enhanced papers shortly in order to properly fulfil the Supreme Court’s ruling & request of yesterday,” Trump wrote. Continue reading.

Supreme Court blocks Trump plan to end DACA program

The Hill logoThe Supreme Court ruled on Thursday to block the Trump administration from ending an Obama-era program that shields nearly 700,000 young undocumented immigrants from deportation, upending a key feature of President Trump’s immigration agenda.

In a 5-4 decision that largely fell along ideological lines, the justices said the administration failed to give an adequate justification for terminating the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, as required by federal law.

“The dispute before the Court is not whether [Department of Homeland Security] may rescind DACA. All parties agree that it may. The dispute is instead primarily about the procedure the agency followed in doing so,” Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in a majority opinion that was joined by the court’s more liberal justices. Continue reading.

Supreme Court ruling on Dreamers sends a clear message to the White House: You have to tell the truth

When it came down to it, the fate of 700,000 immigrants brought to U.S. as children hung on a simple question: Does the White House have to tell the whole truth in justifying its move to deport them?

On June 18, the Supreme Court said “yes.”

In a 5-to-4 decision that came as a major blow to President Trump, the justices ruled that the administration could not proceed with plans to dismantle Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. The Obama-era provision halted the deportation of undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. at an early age, often referred to as Dreamers. Its provisions allow for those young people to live and work in the U.S. although doesn’t provide a path to citizenship.

DACA will now stay in place…for the time being. Continue reading.

Supreme Court tells Trump administration it must redo Dreamers move

Roberts joins court’s four liberal justices in decision

A divided Supreme Court rejected the Trump administration’s push to end an Obama-era program that gives nearly 700,000 so-called Dreamers the ability to work in the United States and avoid deportation, ruling Thursday that the government hadn’t followed federal procedural requirements.

The 5-4 ruling inserts the huge immigration issue of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, known as DACA, back into presidential politics just months ahead of the November elections. The fate of the DACA program could hinge on who wins the White House.

The decision also resets the nearly two-decades-old push in Congress for more permanent protections for undocumented immigrants who arrived in the United States as children, but President Donald Trump for now still has the biggest say in what happens next. Continue reading.

Pew: Three-quarters of Americans support permanent status for ‘Dreamers’

The Hill logoThree-quarters of all U.S. adults support granting permanent legal immigration status to undocumented immigrants who arrived in the country as children, according to a new survey by the Pew Research Center.

The fate of many so-called Dreamers is currently in the balance, as the Supreme Court is due to rule on President Trump‘s order to rescind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which grants deferral from deportation as well as work permits to nearly 700,000 Dreamers.

According to Pew, majorities of all racial and ethnic groups surveyed — and majorities of both Democrats and Republicans — support granting permanent status to Dreamers. Continue reading.

Divided Supreme Court leans toward allowing Trump to end DACA

The Hill logoThe Supreme Court on Tuesday was sharply divided over President Trump‘s move to end Obama-era protections for immigrants who arrived in the U.S. illegally as children, as the justices heard oral arguments in one of the most closely watched cases of the term.

Members of the court’s conservative wing appeared wary of allowing the court to review the administration’s decision to begin phasing out the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which grants deferral from deportation to nearly 700,000 young adult immigrants without legal status.

And questions from conservative justices during oral arguments suggested they appeared to think the administration had supplied legally sound reasons for eliminating DACA.

View the complete November 12 article by John Kruzel on The Hill website here.

How the Trump Administration Eroded Its Own Legal Case on DACA

New York Times logoWhen the Supreme Court hears arguments on Tuesday, the administration’s attempts to end the program protecting “Dreamers” could rest on a top aide’s actions in 2017.

WASHINGTON — When Attorney General Jeff Sessions appeared before news cameras at the Justice Department in early September 2017 to announce that President Trump was ending deportation protections for young undocumented immigrants, he knew the administration had left itself more legally vulnerable than it should have.

At a contentious meeting in the White House Roosevelt Room several days earlier, Elaine C. Duke, then the acting secretary of homeland security, had broken with the rest of Mr. Trump’s team and balked at its demand that she issue a memo ending Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, the Obama-era program known as DACA that shields immigrants who were brought to the United States as children. Continue reading “How the Trump Administration Eroded Its Own Legal Case on DACA”

Trump DACA fight hits Supreme Court

The Hill logoThe Supreme Court on Tuesday will hear oral arguments over President Trump‘s move to end Obama-era protections for undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children, in one of the most closely watched cases of its term.

The controversy over the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program is at the center of a two-year, contentious political fight between Democrats and Trump over immigration. And it presents high stakes for both parties and the court as the justices again review a controversial Trump policy.

A ruling could change the deportation status of nearly 700,000 people and is expected to come next summer, just months before the 2020 election.

View the complete November 11 article by John Kruzel and Rafael Bernal on The Hill website here.