US Supreme Court Will “Spurn” President Obama On Amnesty Issue

The Obama administration today appealed to the Supreme Court a judge’s decision that halted the president’s controversial deferred action plan.

Obama’s executive order, which came after a bipartisan immigration policy overhaul bill passed by the Senate died in the House of Representatives, expanded a program first launched in 2012 that deferred deportation for immigrants brought to the United States as children.

Twenty-six states, led by Texas, are challenging the actions arguing that the President exceeded his authority.

“If the Supreme Court takes the case, I expect it will rebuff President Obama’s misreading of his powers under federal law and his refusal to execute the laws faithfully – his core constitutional responsibility”, said John Yoo, a professor of law at the University of California-Berkeley.

In his petition, U.S. Solicitor General Donald B. Verrilli Jr. said the appeals court had blocked “a federal immigration enforcement policy of great national importance, and has done so in violation of established limits on the judicial power”. Lawyers argued a decision “warrants immediate review” that the court could overturn the injunction and allow the program to proceed.

The government is rushing against the clock to get the case heard in the court’s current term.

The case concerns a November 2014 executive order by Obama that allowed parents of citizens or lawful permanent residents to apply for a program sparing them from deportation and allowing them to work.

Immigrant-rights groups cheered the move and the administration’s continued push for executive amnesty. Those targets include a wide range of criminals, from repeat felony offenders, to any undocumented immigrant who’s had a drunk driving conviction at any time they’ve been here.

If the high court does take up the issue this term, its ruling would come next summer at the height of the presidential race. Last week, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals sided with a lower court and continued to block the programs.

DAPA was created to provide illegal immigrants with work permits and a legal status that would allow them to pay their taxes and benefit from federal health programs, and other services.

The key elements at issue are Obama’s decision to expand the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, and to create a new Deferred Action for Parents of Americans, or DAPA.

And, since Johson is now focused on deporting only those who are a real threat to domestic security, 9.6 million immigrants of a total of 11.5 million are no longer at risk of being sent back home.

“A Syrian child is not going to have an intel record, but precisely for that reason, we believe that this is not the pool of individuals who are most likely to be ISIL operatives”, Rhodes said, using an acronym for the Islamic State group.