In a 4-4 tie, the Supreme Court today affirmed a 5th Circuit Court of Appeals decision that temporarily blocks implementation of President Obama's DAPA and extended DACA amnesties. The case brought by 26 states now returns to District Judge Andrew Hanen’s court for a consideration of its merits.
The last time NumbersUSA was mentioned on the House floor during a debate, it was amnesty-champion Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.) slamming us for supporting an end to the Visa Lottery. But Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) mentioned us in a more flattering way on Wednesday night during debate over his amendment to the Defense spending bill that would have blocked DACA recipients from enlisting in the military.
Reps. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.), Steve King (R-Iowa), and Pete Sessions (R-Texas) pushed for passage of the Gosar and King amendments to the National Defense Appropriations Act on the House floor Wednesday evening. The Gosar and King amendments would prohibit any funds from being used to enlist illegal aliens who received deferred action through Pres. Obama's DACA amnesty into the military. Votes are scheduled on the Gosar and King amendments this afternoon.
Primary challengers were lining up against North Carolina incumbent Renee Ellmers and her history of supporting amnesties and increases in foreign workers. But after a federal court ordered the last minute redrawing of the Congressional district boundaries, Ellmers was pitted against Congressman George Holding. Still, it wasn't enough to save her seat after a 4-year history of voting against her constituents' wishes on immigration.
Federal District Court Judge Andrew Hanen, who has jurisdiction over the DAPA/extended DACA amnesty case, concluded that Justice Department attorneys were “intentionally deceptive” and ordered them to take remedial ethics classes. Judge Hanen said Department of Justice lawyers knowingly hid information and misled the court concerning the approval of amnesty applications.
The House Rules Committee, along with House GOP Leaders, blocked Rep. Paul Gosar's (R-Ariz.) amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would have blocked illegal aliens from enlisting in the military. Instead, GOP Leaders are standing behind a compromise amendment added during the bill's markup between Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) and Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) that would encourage the Secretary of Defense to enlist DACA recipients into the military.
After oral arguments on Monday the eight Supreme Court Justices seem to be evenly split over the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA) case. The court spent 90 minutes debating if Texas and the other 25 states have the right to sue over Pres. Obama’s executive amnesty and if so does DAPA, specifically the Administration's plan to grant work permits and Social Security numbers to a class of illegal aliens, violate the constitution.
Oral arguments before the Supreme Court in the case filed by Texas and 25 other states against Pres. Obama's second executive amnesty will take place on Monday. The Court's ruling, which likely won't come until late June, could have an enormous impact on the race for the White House, Congressional action for the rest of the session, and millions of American workers who would face increased labor competition from millions of illegal aliens receiving work permits if the President's actions are upheld.
Senate Republicans filed an amicus brief yesterday against Pres. Obama’s executive amnesty, Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA), in the upcoming Supreme Court case. In the brief Senate Republicans claim that Pres. Obama overstepped his authority by issuing an executive action that would change current immigration laws.
Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook and co-Founder of the immigration advocacy group FWD.us, signed a brief on Tuesday asking the Supreme Court to rule in favor of Pres. Obama’s executive amnesty, Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA).
In a letter to DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, called out the Obama Administration’s abuse of advance parole authority in granting a citizen path to illegal aliens with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals status. President Obama had said these executive amnesty recipients would not get citizenship.
The House will vote on a motion to file a friend-of-the-court brief in the Supreme Court case against Pres. Obama’s Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA) executive action, according to House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) The brief would state that Pres. Obama overstepped his authority by issuing an executive action that would change current immigration laws.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., expressed confidence that Supreme Court Justices will block implementation of President Obama's DAPA and extended DACA executive amnesties. He said "(s)uch lawlessness must be stopped so that we protect the Constitution and the intent of the Founding Fathers that the legislative branch, which reflects the will of and is accountable to the American people, makes the laws, not the President.”
Today the Texas Attorney General’s Office, on behalf of a 26-state coalition, filed a brief asking the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold a 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling blocking President Obama’s unconstitutional executive amnesty. The brief, which opposes the Administration’s motion for certiorari (i.e., a hearing on the case), argues the president exceeded his authority in attempting to unilaterally grant lawful presence and work permits to millions of illegal aliens.
Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., yesterday warned that the omnibus appropriations bill would quadruple a foreign worker program replacing Americans, expand the refugee program amid serious national security threats, and ignore the existence of dangerous Sanctuary Cities.
The Obama administration formally asked the Supreme Court to review and rule on the court case that is delaying his Deferred Action for Parental Accountability (DAPA) executive amnesty. The petition was filed exactly one year after Pres. Obama announced several executive actions on immigration.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit upheld the injunction on Monday issued by a lower court that stopped Pres. Obama’s 2014 executive amnesty (DAPA) from taking effect. In a 2 to 1 vote the court agreed that Pres. Obama’s executive action affected more than just the enforcement of immigration laws but would give legal status and work permits to millions of illegal aliens.
The newly-elected House Speaker said in several interviews on Sunday that he will not work on any comprehensive immigration bills with Obama due to his use of executive orders to shield millions living in the U.S. illegally from deportation.
Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, announced this morning he will resign from Congress at the end of October. The Speaker leaves behind a long history of pressing his caucus to legalize illegal aliens and increase already historically-high legal immigration levels. This, and his lack of interest in fighting President Obama’s executive amnesties, led to some of the biggest clashes within the House Republican Caucus.
The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled against DHS in a lawsuit over the regulation that allows non-student foreign labor to compete with American workers.
U.S. District Court Judge Andrew Hanen has decided to excuse top DHS officials, including Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, from the August 19th court hearing concerning the issuance of executive amnesty work permits in violation of his injunction.
Breitbart News acquired the written responses from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to the Senate Judiciary Immigration and the National Interest Subcommittee Republicans that showed that the the Obama administration has issued over 7.4 million work permits over the legal limits set by Congress over the past 6 years.
Top DHS officials have recovered all but 22 of 2,000 work permits given to illegal aliens after being threatened with contempt charges by U.S. District Court Judge, Andrew Hanen, for violating his injunction against Obama’s executive amnesty orders. Judge Hanen gave the Obama administration till July 31 to void all of the permits that were given out after the Feb. 17, 2015 injunction.
Written responses to the Senate Judiciary Immigration and the National Interest Subcommittee show that the United States Customs and Immigration Service (USCIS) has granted amnesty to six illegal aliens through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) program even though they were flagged as "possible national security concerns." In the statements, USCIS says that only seven of the 16 DACA applicants flagged with security concerns have been denied amnesty so far and three remain pending.
The Obama Administration proposed a rule that would amnesty the illegal-alien spouses, children and parents of Legal Permanent Residents (LPRs) in a manner similar to the congressionally-authorized 245(i) amnesty. The provisional unlawful presence waiver under the rule would allow an estimated 272,000 illegal aliens in these categories to obtain a green card without facing the current statutory penalty - a 3-year or 10-year bar on re-entry to the U.S.
A three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments last Friday in the case brought by the Obama Administration to overturn a lower-court injunction on executive-amnesty implementation. The Capitol Hill newspaper Politico predicted the case may have to be resolved in the Supreme Court since the Administration is likely to lose in the 5th Circuit.
A House subcommittee yesterday missed an opportunity to permanently defund the president’s executive amnesties. The subcommittee cleared a draft DHS spending bill that defunds the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents amnesty and the expanded Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals amnesty, but only while a related federal court injunction remains in effect. The measure does not affect DHS because the injunction imposed by Texas District Court Judge Andrew Hanen already prohibits the agency from implementing those amnesties.
At a Senate hearing this week an Obama Administration official said that nine out of 10 unaccompanied alien children (UACs) who crossed the border illegally during the border surge were placed with family members or friends in the United States. The vast majority of these minors were never eligible for placement, however, because the law Obama used to shield them from deportation defines a UAC as an illegal-alien minor without a parent or legal guardian in the U.S.
Federal District Judge Andrew Hanen issued an order requiring Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson and top agency officials to appear in his court to explain why they should not be sanctioned for failing to remedy the issuance of 2,000 work permits in violation of the judge’s injunction. The order comes just days before the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals will hear oral arguments in a case brought by the Obama Administration to overturn Judge Hanen’s injunction.
Fifth Circuit Judges Jennifer Walker Elrod, Jerry Smith, and Carolyn Dineen King have been selected to hear the legal merits of President Obama's executive actions to grant amnesty and work permits to millions of illegal aliens. Two of the judges, Elrod and Smith, have previously ruled against President Obama in regard to the executive actions.
U.S. District Court Judge Andrew Hanen ordered the Administration to void and change the three-year work permits issued to about 2,000 illegal aliens after he imposed an injunction on implementation of President Obama’s executive amnesties. The judge said he was shocked this illegal action has not yet been remedied, but did not sanction the Administration’s conduct.
Pushed by Democratic Members of Congress and special interest groups, Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson today announced DHS would further limit the detention of those who illegally crossed the border as family units. Johnson's announcement comes despite a FOX News report this week indicating that 84 percent of Central American families who were released during last year’s border surge failed to appear in court.
As the courts sort out the legality of President Obama's executive action to grant amnesty and work permits to 5 million illegal aliens, the Obama administration is moving forward with its Priority Enforcement Program, which prohibits U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents from targeting most illegal aliens for removal, including most of those who come into contact with state and local police.
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Tex., introduced the Immigration Slush Fund Elimination Act, which would ban DHS from using the fees collected for legal immigration benefits to fund President Obama’s executive amnesties. In a press release, Sen. Cruz said, “The federal government should not be in the business of looting the wallets of those who followed the law and came here legally to fund the President’s illegal and unconstitutional amnesty. This bill will cut off DHS’s credit card.”
The Obama Administration has quietly ceased its preparations to implement the president's Nov. 20 executive amnesty. The Department of Homeland Security has suspended plans to hire up to 3,100 new employees that would have processed the applications to grant work permits and other documentation necessary to allow approximately 5 million illegal aliens to stay in the U.S.
Politico reports the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the Justice Department and a coalition of 26 states to comment on a three-judge panel’s ruling that temporarily affirmed an injunction blocking President Obama's executive amnesties. Supplemental briefs addressing that panel’s majority and dissenting opinions in the emergency stay case are due on June 18. Another three-judge panel within the 5th Circuit will hear arguments in the separate injunction appeal case beginning on July 10.
IRS Commissioner John Koskinen confirmed through written responses to Congress that illegal aliens granted amnesty under President Obama's executive actions could claim back tax refunds even if they never filed returns to pay their taxes in the first place. The responses were released by Sen. Chuck Grassley, who pressed Commissioner Koskinen in the past.
The House of Representatives approved three immigration amendments offered by Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) to the Commerce, Justice, and Science Appropriations bill Wednesday evening. Two of the three amendments were approved with roll call votes, including an amendment that would block funding for the Department of Justice in its defense in the lawsuit filed by Texas and 25 other states against Pres. Obama's unconstitutional executive amnesties.
The Department of Justice announced it will not ask the Supreme Court to negate a district court judge’s injunction on implementation of President Obama’s executive amnesties. The Administration will instead proceed with an appeal before the 5th Circuit Court scheduled for July 10.
The 5th Circuit of the Federal Court of Appeals rejected an emergency request by the Obama administration to lift an injunction on President Obama's plan to grant amnesty and work permits to millions of illegal aliens. The temporary injunction was put in place after 26 states sued the Obama administration alleging the plan is unconstitutional.
The House of Representatives approved an amendment offered by Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.) on Thursday night that strips an amnesty provision from the National Defense Authorization Act. The provision would have encouraged the Secretary of Defense to waive military enlistment requirements for illegal aliens who received amnesty through Pres. Obama's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.
The Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security released a report finding that DHS does not consistently track its uses of prosecutorial discretion in immigration enforcement, which may compromise national security and public safety.
The House Rules Committee approved votes for 135 amendments last night to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), including an amendment offered by Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.) that would strip out language, encouraging the Secretary of Defense to waive enlistment requirements for illegal aliens. The Committee also blocked Rep. Jeff Denham's (R-Calif.) military amnesty amendment from a floor vote.
The Cato Institute, along with several law professors, has filed an amicus brief supporting the lawsuit filed by 26 states challenging President Obama's executive action to grant amnesty and work permits to millions of illegal aliens. Joining Cato in the brief are South Texas College of Law professor, Josh Blackman, George Mason University School of Law professor, Jeremy A. Rabkin, and Roger Williams University School of Law professor, Peter S. Margulies.
The Blaze -- Pete Kasperowicz
The government watchdog for the Department of Homeland Security released a report this week saying that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement released nearly 13,000 illegal immigrants in fiscal year 2014, because ICE deemed they were not enforcement priorities.
The same report from the DHS’ Office of Inspector General found that DHS is not gathering and assessing enough data on its various policies of prosecutorial discretion, even though it had promised to do so.
113 Republican Members of Congress signed on to an amicus brief that argues the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals should affirm Judge Andrew Hanen’s injunction against implementation of President Obama’s executive amnesties. The list includes Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Ky., House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, Va., former House Judiciary Chairman Lamar Smith, Tex., and Sen. Ted Cruz, Tex.
The Washington Times reports that Department of Justice attorneys informed a federal judge that USCIS issued 2,000 three-year work permits under the extended version of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) amnesty after the judge’s Feb. 16 injunction. Administration attorneys were already in jeopardy of possible sanctions for deceiving the judge regarding the issuance of 100,000 applications under the 2012 DACA amnesty prior to the injunction.
The House Armed Services Committee approved an amendment on Wednesday to the National Defense Authorization Act of 2016, offered by Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), that affirms Pres. Obama's unconstitutional 2012 DACA amnesty. The amendment was approved 33-to-30 by the Committee, mostly along party lines, but with enough GOP support to pass.
