Texas judge halts Biden program offering legal status to immigrants married to US citizens
The Biden administration policy, which would protect its accepted applicants from deportation, could benefit an estimated half a million adults in the country illegally and 50,000 of their children.
On Monday, a Texas judge issued an order halting a Biden administration policy designed to grant legal status to immigrant spouses of U.S. citizens and their children without requiring them to leave the country.
U.S. District Judge J. Campbell Barker's ruling temporarily blocks the policy, which had just begun accepting applications a week earlier. This decision follows a lawsuit filed by a coalition of 16 Republican-led states seeking to end the program, arguing that it "incentivizes illegal immigration and will irreparably harm" the states.
The Biden administration's policy, intended to protect accepted applicants from deportation, could potentially benefit around 500,000 adults living in the country illegally and 50,000 of their children.
Under the policy, undocumented spouses and their children could apply for permanent resident status without leaving the U.S., provided they have lived in the country for at least 10 years as of June 17, 2024, and were legally married to a U.S. citizen by that date. Those previously placed on parole or deemed a threat to public safety or national security are excluded from the program.
The policy would also permit undocumented immigrants to work for three years in the U.S. while seeking permanent legal status, instead of requiring them to leave the country and await processing elsewhere, which was the previous norm.
When unveiling the program in June, Biden stated, “I refuse to believe that to secure our border we have to walk away from being an American,” and emphasized that generations have been “renewed, revitalized and refreshed by the talent, the skill, the hard work, the courage and determination of immigrants coming to our country.”
Judge Barker, appointed by former President Donald Trump, has set the order to expire in two weeks, with the possibility of extension.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton praised the judge's decision on X, declaring, “We have temporarily BLOCKED Biden's unlawful new ‘parole in place’ program,” and criticized the program as an “unconstitutional scheme.”
Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody also supported the temporary block, stating, “We won’t stop fighting the Biden-Harris open-borders agenda.”
Karen Tumlin, founder of the immigrants rights group Justice Action Center, called the order an “extreme measure” and expressed dismay for the clients and couples affected by the program. “To halt a process for which Texas has not been able to provide an iota of evidence that it would harm the state is baffling,” she said. “This is heart-breaking for our clients and the thousands of couples who hope to benefit from this process and be able to live without fear that their family will be separated.”
The Justice Action Center and Make the Road New York, another immigrant rights organization, filed a motion on Monday to intervene in the case on behalf of 11 clients.
“We hope the court will rule swiftly in favor of our Motion so that our clients will finally have their perspectives considered, as their family unity and stability hangs in the balance,” said Harold Solis, co-legal director of Make the Road New York. “We will continue to fight for as long as needed to ensure that the Keeping Families Together process remains intact.”
As the November election approaches, immigration remains a key issue for voters. The Biden administration has faced criticism over the record number of undocumented immigrants caught crossing the U.S. border. Migrant encounters have set historical records in each of the past three years, exceeding 2.5 million in 2023.
In the same month the administration announced the policy for undocumented spouses, Biden signed an executive order allowing the U.S. to turn away migrants entering without legal permission when more than 2,500 migrants arrive between legal ports of entry.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection statistics released in August showed a significant drop in migrant apprehensions along the U.S.-Mexico border, with July's figures at the lowest level of the Biden era. The agency reported 56,408 migrant encounters between ports of entry in July, a decrease of 57% from 132,642 in the same month the previous year and down 32% from June.
