(RepublicanPress.org) – Congress has tried multiple times recently to pass legislation to deal with issues at the border. Both sides agree that the immigration system is not functioning efficiently, and changes need to happen. Still, no bills have passed to address the matter. On June 4, President Joe Biden used his executive powers to limit migrant entry into the country. More than a week later, multiple groups sued the administration.
On June 12, the American Civil Liberties Union, National Immigrant Justice Center, and several other groups filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of the Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center and the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services.
The plaintiffs referenced President Biden’s June 4 proclamation and subsequent DHS and DOJ rules limiting access to asylum protections. They said the move was similar to one attempted by former President Donald Trump — a ban that was successfully challenged.
The suit claims that the administration doesn’t have the “authority to override Congress,” which hasn’t passed immigration legislation. The plaintiff groups said the federal government can’t unilaterally “bar asylum based on how one enters the country.”
NIJC Litigation Director Keren Zwick said people all over the world come to the United States seeking refuge from “persecution” and “torture,” adding that he thought the administration’s recent move was “shameful.” The ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project Deputy Director Lee Gelernt said the groups had no choice “but to sue.”
However, a DHS spokesperson told The Hill that the rule does not violate the law. While the spokesperson couldn’t speak about specific legal matters pertaining to the suit, they said the “Securing the Border rule is lawful” and is “already having an impact” at the border. The administration aims to keep the migrant limitation in place unless a court tells them otherwise. Biden felt that he had no choice but to take some type of action after bipartisan legislation was halted by Republicans in Congress.
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