Led by the conservative state of Texas, a 16-state coalition sued the Biden-Harris Administration to stop what they characterized as an amnesty for illegal immigrants plan from going into effect. That red state coalition quickly scored a courtroom victory, with a federal judge issuing a stay blocking the Biden-Harris Administration’s rules.
The lawsuit came two months after the Biden-Harris Administration announced a plan that, if it were to go into effect, would create a fast-track path to citizenship for hundreds of thousands of foreign nationals who entered America illegally and have been living here illegally for over a decade and who are married to an American citizen.
The lawsuit was sparked by part of the plan going into effect and being implemented by the Department of Homeland Security. It started implementing its “Implementation of Keeping Families Together” program, which enables federal agents to “process for certain noncitizen spouses and stepchildren of U.S. citizens who are present in the United States without admission or parole,” allowing them “to request parole in place.”
DHS claimed that parole in place “will achieve the significant public benefit of promoting the unity and stability of families, increasing the economic prosperity of American communities, strengthening diplomatic relationships with partner countries in the region, reducing strain on limited U.S. government resources, and furthering national security, public safety, and border security objectives.”
In any case, the 16-state coalition sued the agents of the administration who are putting the plan in place, naming U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and their respective heads, as defendants. The coalition argued that they have standing because the program will dramatically increase costs on state-paid for welfare programs.
In the case, the coalition said, “Federal statute prohibits illegal aliens from obtaining most immigration benefits, such as permanent resident status, without first leaving the country and being admitted to re-enter and reside in the country lawfully.” Continuing, the coalition noted that the program “effectively provides a new pathway to a green card and eventual citizenship.”
Continuing, the red state coalition went on to argue in the case that the DHS, Biden-Harris Administration program will allow “more than 1.3 million aliens who are unlawfully present in the United States to circumvent the processes established by Congress to apply for permanent residency – an opportunity that is not legally available to those present in the country unlawfully.”
Texas AG Ken Paxton, commenting on the case, said, “Under Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, the federal government is actively working to turn the United States into a nation without borders and a country without laws. I will not let this happen.” He continued, “Biden’s new parole workaround unilaterally grants the opportunity for citizenship to unvetted aliens whose first act on American soil was to break our laws. This violates the Constitution and actively worsens the illegal immigration disaster that is hurting Texas and our country.”
The court issued a 14-day stay on the program as requested by the plaintiffs, ruling, “Here, the court sees fit to issue an administrative stay. As in the United States v. Texas stay litigation cited above, the court has undertaken a first-blush review of the merits of plaintiffs’ standing and cause of action in light of the evidence submitted with their motion for a TRO and a stay. The claims are substantial and warrant closer consideration than the court has been able to afford to date.”
Watch AG Paxton comment on the shocking situation at the US-Mexico border here:
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