Federal Judge Roger W. Titus ruled yesterday in the Federal District Court of Maryland that the Trump Administration’s decision to rescind the Obama-era DACA program is legal. The judge's decision could help the Administration appeal New York and California court rulings requiring the continued processing DACA-status renewals.
"This decision took control of a pell-mell situation and provided Congress — the branch of government charged with determining immigration policy — an opportunity to remedy it. Given the reasonable belief that DACA was unlawful, the decision to wind down DACA in an orderly manner was rational," Judge Titus wrote.
Despite the opposition's argument that the "inappropriate" nature of Pres. Trump's tweets should be considered in the court’s final ruling, Judge Titus stated that the the President's decision to rescind the illegal DACA program was "rationally supported," and that the his tweets were irrelevant to the court’s injunction to repeal it.
"As disheartening or inappropriate as the president's occasionally disparaging remarks may be, they are not relevant to the larger issues governing the DACA rescission. The DACA Rescission Memo is clear as to its purpose and reasoning, and its decision is rationally supported by the administrative record."
The Justice Department released a statement on the injunction.
"The Department of Justice has long maintained that DHS acted within its lawful authority in making the decision to wind down DACA in an orderly manner, and we welcome the good news today that the district court in Maryland strongly agrees.
Today's decision also highlights a serious problem with the disturbing growth in the use of nationwide injunctions, which causes the Maryland court's correct judgement in favor of government to be undermined by the overbroad injunctions that have been entered by courts in other states.
Despite these hurdles, the Justice Department will continue to defend the promotion and enforcement of the rule of law, which is so vital to protecting a nation, its borders, and its citizens."
Judge Titus commented that, despite his personal dislike for the outcome of the ruling, the court is “constrained by its constitutionally limited role,” and urged Pres. Trump and Congress come into agreement on a solution.
