The U.S. Supreme Court will hear a multi-state lawsuit challenging the Obama administration’s executive action to shield 5 million illegal immigrants from deportation.
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Obama’s executive order issued in November 2014 protects up to five million undocumented immigrants from being deported from the United States and provides them with the opportunity to obtain work permits.
The politically charged case stems from the administration’s appeal of lower court rulings that blocked Obama’s efforts to reform immigration policy through executive orders.
The case will be heard in the midst of a presidential campaign already roiled by the issue.
The case will likely go before the court in April, with a decision coming before the court adjourns in June, the Washington Post reported.
The Supreme Court decided today to review a decision adverse to the government in the legal challenge to President Obama’s overhaul of the nation’s immigration rules. “We will be representing members of Congress and thousands of Americans in a brief urging the Supreme Court to uphold the appeals court decision – and put a stop to the impermissible overreach that has been the hallmark of this president”.
The high court added a separate question on whether the president’s guidance violates a provision of U.S. Constitution that requires the president to “take care that the laws be faithfully executed”.
Obama said that he could take all of those actions under the guise of prosecutorial discretion, which gives the administration the power to decide which immigrants it wants to deport. 18, 2015, President Barack Obama speaks during a news conference in the briefing room at the White House in Washington.
Texas quickly led a legal challenge to the program and has won every round in court so far.
“The court should affirm what President Obama said himself on more than 20 occasions: that he can not unilaterally rewrite congressional laws and circumvent the people’s representatives”, Paxton said. The administration said the lower court ruling denies parents “who have lived in this country for years, would pass a background check, are not priorities for removal, and have a son or daughter who is a USA citizen or a lawful permanent resident”.
Texas argued that it would be saddled with millions of dollars in additional expenses to issue drivers licenses to an estimated half a million parents who could be eligible in the state.
Leading Democrat Hillary Clinton has said she would maintain and expand President Obama’s reforms, while her Republican counterpart, Donald Trump has said he would reverse the reforms and step up enforcement. Obama also wanted to extend that protection to more immigrants who were brought here as children.
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In a statement out Tuesday, Paxton said that by taking up the case, the Supeme Court “recognizes the importance of the separation of powers”.
