Obama Lawyers Ask U.S. Supreme Court to Revive Immigration Plan

The request, outlined in a 35-page court filing, asserts that the case “warrants immediate review” and comes after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit earlier this month upheld a challenge to the deferred deportation plan brought by Texas and a 25-state coalition led by Republican governors.

The injunction has to do with the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents program (DAPA), which protects the parents of USA citizens from deportations and allows them to defer deportation and legally work in the country; this part was suppose to commence in May, and represents the bulk, 4.7 million illegal immigrants.

While we continue to await the Supreme Court’s decision on whether to take up DACA and DAPA, we must continue to call on the President to follow through on all the promises he made a year ago. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who have supported extending legal status to undocumented immigrants, view the DAPA program as an unconstitutional circumvention of Congress. While many Republican politicians hope to block Obama’s programs, many immigrant rights activists say the executive actions didn’t go far enough. We are confident a Supreme Court review will show they are wrong. Latino Democratic politicians also urged the Supreme Court to not push a decision on the program to next year’s term. The Administration must continue to defend its authority-one that has been used by every Administration since 1965-to shape immigration policy. Both flawed court rulings failed to recognize that the President’s announcements amount to a common-sense and lawful use of executive discretion.

If justices agree to hear the case soon, it could set up a potential ruling in June, when the court’s current term ends.

Pro-immigration groups welcomed the Obama administration’s quick appeal of a judicial ruling that shut down his executive actions on immigration.

Until now, the women had been blocked from directly participating in the case after a district court judge in Texas ruled they could not intervene. We must recognize that those executive actions were a good first step, but only a first step towards real, lasting immigration reform that is needed in our country. Otherwise, a decision would not come until after Obama has left office.

The states are expected to file their brief with the Supreme Court in the coming weeks, and could ask for an extension of time.

President Barack Obama, center, standing with Vice President Joe Biden, right, listens as Diana Calderon, a student who has benefited from the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, speaks at a reception in the East Room of the White House in Washington, on October 15.