President Joe Biden lashed out at a federal appeals court after it ruled the Obama administration illegally implemented the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. The president, in a statement, called on Congress to make the program permanent. DACA offers legislative protections to more than 600,000 immigrants currently protected under it. He also claimed the court’s decision was “unlawful.”
The 5th U.S. Circuit Court’s panel of three judges decided the Obama administration did not have the legal authority to institute the DACA program. However, despite its ruling on the program’s legality, the judges said DACA migrants could continue to receive legal protections and stopped short of dismantling it judicially.
“I am disappointed in today’s Fifth Circuit decision holding that DACA is unlawful. The court’s stay provides a temporary reprieve for DACA recipients, but one thing remains clear: the lives of Dreamers remain in limbo,” said Biden. “Today’s decision is the result of continued efforts by Republican state officials to strip DACA recipients of the protections and work authorization that many have now held for over a decade.”
He continued, “And while we will use the tools we have to allow Dreamers to live and work in the only country they know as home. It is long past time for Congress to pass permanent protections for Dreamers, including a pathway to citizenship.”
The court also ordered a Texas federal judge to review the programs and ruled the U.S. government could not process new applicants for DACA. “A district court is the best position to review the administrative record in the rulemaking proceeding and determine whether our holdings as to the 2012 DACA Memorandum fully resolve issues concerning the Final Rule,” wrote the court.
Biden blames Republican-led states for court’s DACA ruling
President Biden blamed “MAGA-Republican officials” specifically as several states led by Republicans sued the U.S. government over the DACA program, resulting in the court’s decision. Governors contend the program negatively impacts their state and local communities as it forces them to foot the bill for DACA recipients’ healthcare and education.
“My administration is committed to defending Dreamers against attacks from Republican officials in Texas and other states. This challenge to DACA is just another example of the extreme agenda being pushed by MAGA-Republican officials,” Biden concluded.
The court’s ruling takes effect on October 31.
