The Department of Justice
finally made good Thursday on
their promise to file a motion with the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals to lift a nationwide hold that a federal judge placed on Obama's 2014 immigration actions. The immigration programs—Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals and Deferred Action for Parental Accountability—would provide deportation relief for up to five million immigrants.
Government lawyers are asking the appeals court to stay Judge Andrew Hanen's nationwide hold, at a minimum, for states other than Texas, which led the legal challenge to the immigration programs. From the conclusion of the DOJ's motion:
For the foregoing reasons, the preliminary injunction should be stayed pending appeal. At a minimum, the injunction should be stayed with respect to: (1) States that are not parties to this suit; and (2) plaintiff States other than Texas.
Government lawyers are in the process of appealing Judge Hanen's overall ruling on the immigration actions, but that process could take months. In the meantime, the motion filed Thursday is intended to allow the immigration programs to move forward while the government appeals Hanen's decision in
Texas v. U.S., the Republican-led legal challenge to Obama's actions.