The Obama Administration is seeking to stay proceedings in the executive amnesty court case until February 2017, thus giving the Trump Administration time to take over. Obama had sought to block a temporary injunction placed on his Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA) program and extended Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which would have allowed him to implement the amnesties before leaving office.
The Washington Times reports the Justice Department filed court documents seeking the delay in concert with the State of Texas, which oversaw a lawsuit on behalf of 26 states to invalidate DAPA and extended DACA. “Given the change in Administration, the parties jointly submit that a brief stay of any further litigation in this Court before beginning any further proceedings would serve judicial efficiency and economy so that the parties have a better understanding of how they might choose to move forward,” the documents said.
The case resides in the court of Judge Andrew Hanen, who enjoined the DAPA and extended DACA programs just before they took effect in February 2015. Obama’s Justice Department appealed Hanen’s injunction to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, but that court upheld it. Obama appealed that ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court, but the justices, deadlocked in a 4-4 tie, sent the case back to Hanen. He will have to consent to suspend the proceedings.
The Obama amnesties would have given work permits to millions of illegal aliens and formally stayed their deportations, although they were in no jeopardy of deportation under Administration policies.
Read more in The Washington Times.
