16 Republican-led States Challenge Biden’s Aid Program for Undocumented Spouses

Texas along with 15 other Republican-dominated states have launched a legal challenge to the Biden administration’s recently announced initiative aimed at granting legal status to hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants who are married to U.S. citizens.

Lawsuit Filed to Halt the Program

Just days after the program started accepting applications, this legal suit was filed. The states, led by Texas, seek a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction to immediately suspend the program. They argue that the new initiative is illegal as it surpasses the executive branch’s discretion to set policy. The lawsuit was lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.

According to the 67-page court filing, “The Biden-Harris Administration — dissatisfied with the system Congress created, and for blatant political purposes — has yet again attempted to create its own immigration system.” The states maintaining this lawsuit claim that this action is nothing less than ” mass amnesty cloaked in purported executive discretion — a sweeping, last-minute ploy by an administration.”},

Biden’s Initiative: A New Pathway to Citizenship

President Biden had announced this initiative on June 18, marking one of the most widespread actions to aid undocumented immigrants since the enactment of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals 12 years ago. The new program aims to pave a path to U.S. citizenship for numerous undocumented spouses of American citizens.

The recently introduced program, which could potentially put many undocumented spouses on a path to U.S. citizenship, commenced its process of accepting applications this week. This significant move has proven controversial, igniting a series of legal challenges.

Local Challenges to Federal Immigration Policies

This is not an isolated instance of a Republican-led state challenging federal immigration policies or powers. Many states, primarily led by Texas, have been taking an assertive stance in testing, challenging, and attempting to reshape the federal government’s immigration policies.

However, the latest lawsuit marks one of the most formidable legal challenges yet posed to Biden’s immigration policy, seeking directly to halt a significant and expansive initiative aimed at supporting hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants.

Political Implications and Outlook

While the situation continues to evolve and the law takes its course, the political implications and debate surrounding these issues underscore the contentious nature of immigration policy in the United States. Both, the introduction of the program and its subsequent legal resistance highlight the polarizing nature of such policies, their broader political undercurrents, and the different approaches to addressing undocumented immigration in the country.