Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton today filed a lawsuit on behalf of seven states that seeks to force the federal government to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. President Trump moved to end DACA after a 10-state coalition threatened such a lawsuit, but federal district courts in California, New York and Washington, D.C. ruled DACA must continue. Joining Paxton in the lawsuit are the attorneys general of Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, South Carolina and West Virginia.
In a press release, Paxton said, "Our lawsuit is about the rule of law, not the wisdom of any particular immigration policy. Texas has argued for years that the federal executive branch lacks the power to unilaterally grant unlawfully present aliens lawful presence and work authorization. Left intact, DACA sets a dangerous precedent by giving the executive branch sweeping authority to ignore the laws enacted by Congress and change our nation's immigration laws to suit a president's own policy preferences... As of August 21, 2017, DACA led to U.S. citizenship for 1,056 aliens and provided a pathway to citizenship for 39,514 aliens -- even though the Obama administration promised the program would not grant any pathway to citizenship...The president has a duty under the Constitution to 'take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed,' and DACA does exactly the opposite. It encourages lawlessness within the federal government and at our borders."
The lawsuit urges the Southern District of Texas court to declare DACA unlawful and stop DHS from renewing DACA status or issuing future permits. It does not ask the federal government to deport those with DACA status or rescind existing DACA permits. The case has been assigned to Judge Andrew Hanen, who ruled against the DAPA and extended DACA amnesty in 2015.
Read more in The Washington Times.
