A federal appeals court ruled Friday against an Obama-era policy that granted amnesty and a path to citizenship to illegal immigrants who entered the United States as children.
A three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans unanimously ruled that a new version of President Biden’s 2022 policy oversteps the authority of the executive branch. I put it down. The decision, by two Republican-appointed judges and one Democratic-appointed judge, is the latest in a series of legal challenges to child arrivals that have left 500,000 so-called Dreamers awaiting resolution for more than a decade. It’s the latest blow to the deferred action program.
Friday’s decision does not immediately change the status quo. Program beneficiaries can renew their temporary permits to live and work in the United States without fear of deportation. However, the federal government is still prohibited from issuing new applications.
But Friday’s ruling opens the door for DACA to be appealed to the Supreme Court for a third time. And it comes just three days before President-elect Trump takes office with a promise to begin mass deportations of illegal immigrants.
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In the photo, President Biden is on the left and pro-DACA protesters are on the right. (Nathan Posner/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images; Yuri Gripas/Abaka/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
President Trump tried to repeal DACA during his first term, but he also made statements expressing his desire to allow Dreamers to remain in the United States.
President Obama introduced DACA in 2012, citing Congressional inaction on legislation aimed at giving people brought to the United States as children a path to legal status. A legal battle ensued, including two trips to the Supreme Court.
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Immigrant rights activists rally in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, DC, on November 12, 2019. (Mandel Gann/AFP via Getty Images)
Biden’s 2022 policy update did not make any substantive changes, but it was subject to public comment as part of a formal rulemaking process aimed at improving its chances of surviving in court.
Texas Attorney General Ken Payton, who led the challenge on behalf of the Republican-led state, called Friday’s ruling “a huge victory.”
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Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton led the latest challenge to the DACA program. (Dylan Hollingsworth/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“I look forward to working with President-elect Donald Trump to ensure the rule of law is restored and the illegal immigration crisis is finally stopped,” Paxton said.
The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
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In 2016, with one vacancy on the Supreme Court, the justices deadlocked 4-4 over DACA expansion and programs for parents of DACA recipients, leaving a lower court’s ruling on withholding benefits in place. In 2020, the high court ruled 5-4 that the Trump administration wrongfully terminated DACA by failing to follow federal procedures, allowing DACA to continue.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Chris Pandolfo is a breaking news reporter for Fox News Digital. Send your tips to chris.pandolfo@fox.com and follow us on Twitter @ChrisCPandolfo.
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