The Biden administration’s attempts to institute a 100-day hiatus for deportations of illegal immigrants took another hit on Tuesday when a district judge extended a ban on its imposition in response to a Texas lawsuit.
U.S. District Judge Drew Tipton indefinitely banned enforcement of the January 20 memorandum that would have introduced a 100-day moratorium on most deportations.
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Tipton had previously issued a two-week restraining order on the policy after Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton argued it violated federal law and an agreement with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that Texas should be consulted before a such a step is taken.
Biden had campaigned during the 100-day hiatus as part of a sweeping immigration agenda that included a halt to border wall construction, an end to the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) and a path to citizenship for millions of illegal immigrants.
The broad “break” would have had exceptions. It would exclude those who, according to a written finding by the Chief of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), have been guilty of terrorism or espionage or who pose a threat to national security. It would also exclude those who were not in the US before November 1, 2020, those who agreed to waive the right to stay, and those who have been individually determined by the ICE Director to be removed by law .
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But Texas argued that the directive violates the constitution and federal law, as well as a contractual agreement between Texas and the DHS, signed in the closing days of the Trump administration, that the state would be consulted before reducing immigration enforcement. or deportations are interrupted.
The agreement requires DHS to provide Texas with 180 days’ notice of any proposed change on any issue that would reduce enforcement or increase the number of “removable or non-permissible aliens” in the US. Paxton claims the agreement has been breached.
“Our state defends most of the country’s southern border. If the law is not properly enforced, our citizens and law enforcement personnel will be directly and immediately endangered,” Paxton said in a statement last month announcing the lawsuit.
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The administration has since issued guidelines to ICE agents, informing them that they need prior approval from managers to arrest some illegal immigrants if they don’t fall into categories similar to those that were also exempt from the deportation freeze.
The counseling is temporary and lasts three months until DHS can provide further counseling. Officials said the guidelines do not explicitly prevent anyone from being arrested or deported. Instead, it directs resources to specific ends.
Fox News’ Griff Jenkins and The Associated Press contributed to this report.