Republican AGs Celebrate as Judge Temporarily Blocks Biden-Harris Admin's 'Illegal Executive Amnesty Program'
Editor’s Note: Our readers responded strongly to this story when it originally ran; we’re reposting it here in case you missed it.
Barely a month after the Biden administration announced it, a federal judge has put a hold on President Joe Biden’s latest effort to get around the law when it comes to illegal immigration.
U.S. District Judge J. Campbell Barker ruled that a lawsuit brought by 16 Republican state attorneys general makes claims that “are substantial and warrant closer consideration than the court has been able to afford to date.”
The lawsuit also showed that the Biden program makes a mockery of Vice President Kamala Harris’ claims to be tough on border security.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who led the lawsuit, celebrated the news in a social media post.
BREAKING: We have temporarily BLOCKED Biden’s unlawful new “parole in place” program.
Biden’s unconstitutional scheme would have rewarded over 1 million illegal aliens with the opportunity for citizenship after breaking our country’s laws—and incentivized countless more.
This… https://t.co/TemDs5FOrL
— Attorney General Ken Paxton (@KenPaxtonTX) August 27, 2024
“Biden’s unconstitutional scheme would have rewarded over 1 million illegal aliens with the opportunity for citizenship after breaking our country’s laws — and incentivized countless more,” Paxton wrote. “This is just the first step. We are going to keep fighting for Texas, our country, and the rule of law.”
The lawsuit was supported by America First Legal, a conservative group led by former Trump White House adviser Stephen Miller.
And America First Legal social media post called the ruling a “huge victory” over an “illegal executive amnesty program.”
‼️HUGE VICTORY‼️
The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas just temporarily FROZE the Biden-Harris administration’s illegal executive amnesty program following our lawsuit against DHS with @KenPaxtonTX @Raul_Labrador and a coalition of 14 states. https://t.co/y4RJakGYef pic.twitter.com/cwR9ysynOc
— America First Legal (@America1stLegal) August 26, 2024
The program is called “Keeping Families Together,” the kind of dewy-eyed title Democrats like because they hide the underlying aim of undermining U.S. law.
It would allow illegal immigrants who’ve been in the U.S. for 10 years and married to a U.S. citizen to apply for a legal status known as “parole in place” while applying for permanent residency status, according to a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services news release.
That would essentially supersede the requirement that illegal aliens return to their country of origin for 10 years before even being considered for legal permanent residency.
It would originally apply to an estimated 500,000 individuals, according to White House estimates, NBC News reported.
But its obvious impact — as an incentive for countless millions of others to enter the U.S. illegally in the hopes they could benefit from a similar form of amnesty at some point — is clear.
As Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador wrote in a social media post published Aug. 26, “This illegal interpretation of authority is just one more abuse from the Biden-Harris Administration regarding immigration. We cannot look those families in the face who are waiting patiently and say we choose to reward those who break the law instead.”
This illegal interpretation of authority is just one more abuse from the Biden-Harris Administration regarding immigration. We cannot look those families in the face who are waiting patiently and say we choose to reward those who break the law instead.https://t.co/3SZUZbf9C3
— Raúl R. Labrador (@Raul_Labrador) August 26, 2024
And in an election year where Harris is trying to hide her own past as lenient on illegal immigration — even running an ad titled “Tougher” to make the case that she’s a veritable Javert when it comes to illegal immigration, as the New York Post reported — the AGs’ lawsuit shines a spotlight where Democrats would prefer the dark.
The program is just a piece of the Biden-Harris administration’s demonstrated disdain for the law.
From the beginning of the administration, the White House has thrown open the borders to an alien invasion — in contempt of statutes passed by Congress and signed by previous presidents.
On other fronts, Biden has battled with the courts in an obvious vote-buying scheme known as student loan “forgiveness,” which he keeps attempting despite losing in the Supreme Court.
The program was announced June 18, when Biden was still running for re-election, but there’s no doubt it had the support of current Democratic nominee Harris.
The woman has spent three years as the “border czar,” after all — no matter how much she and her media supporters try to pretend otherwise.
Fortunately, a federal judge sees it for what it is — another attempt to make law unilaterally by a White House that constantly claims to be battling to “save democracy.”
It’s exactly the kind of sham American voters need to be thinking of in the November election.
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