Government seeks to end immigration hold

Immigration reformThe US government yesterday requested an appeals court to lift the temporary hold placed on President Obama’s executive action to protect millions of undocumented immigrants from the threat of deportation, saying that it cannot wait for US District Judge Andrew Hanen to make a ruling.

Attorneys for the Justice Department filed the emergency motion in New Orleans’ 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals to get the preliminary injunction that Hanen laid down last month lifted. The injunction was granted after a lawsuit was filed by 26 states to try to overturn the President’s immigration reform.  The states, headed by Texas, say that the executive action taken by the president would cost them too much money for extra education, health care and law enforcement, and that the action is unconstitutional.

Hanen had been asked to lift the injunction himself by the Justice Department; however, the judge postponed any decision until March 19th after allegations that he was misled over details of the immigration implementation plan by the government. Attorneys for the Justice Department claim that the injunction was “unprecedented and wrong” and say that its lifting is vital given that it “irreparably interferes with [the Homeland Security Department’s] ability to protect the Homeland and secure our borders.”

14 states, including Iowa and California, also filed a motion yesterday to support the injunction being lifted, believing that states will benefit from immigration reform through improved public safety and an increase in tax revenues.