US asks SCOTUS to allow Obama's deferred deportation program
The U.S. Justice Department on Friday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review an appeals court decision that blocked President Obama’s deferred deportation program.
The cert petition (PDF) says the injunction upheld by the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals was unprecedented and the decision merited immediate review, report SCOTUSblog, the New York Times, the National Law Journal (sub. req.) and the Washington Post. How Appealing links to additional coverage.
The cert petition cites discretion given to the Department of Homeland Security to prioritize how it spends its congressional appropriation for identifying and removing immigrants residing here illegally.
Obama’s November 2014 executive action on immigration offered deferred deportation and work permits to immigrants who had lived here at least five years and were the parents of U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents. The program also expanded deportation deferrals for immigrants here illegally who came to the United States as children.
The New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on Nov. 9 that at least one state—Texas—had standing to sue because it would have to provide driver’s licenses to the program’s beneficiaries. The appeals court also found that the challenge to the program by 26 states had a substantial likelihood of success on the merits for two reasons.
First, the federal government did not follow administrative requirements, the appeals court said. Second, the federal government did not have the authority to act.
The Justice Department says the appeals court acted “in violation of established limits on judicial power” and warns that an expansive view of justiciability “would entangle federal courts in policy disputes that are properly resolved through the political process.”
