Today, in one of its biggest cases of this term, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments on President Obama’s executive order on immigration deportation. The plan which shields 4 million undocumented immigrants currently residing in the United States through the issuance of work permits hangs in the balance as the Justices prepare for the last major case of Obama’s presidency.
The program at stake is an expansion of a 2012 policy called Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival. Now called the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents, the program is written to include a larger age group, offering to bring reprieve to those who were once brought here as children.
As arguments were heard today, immigrants’ rights activists gathered in the Court’s plaza to support the policies that would shield them from deportation, while others arrived in protest of the executive actions.
With only eight justices hearing the case due to the current vacancy, the final result can be greatly impacted. The case, which was brought by 26 states, seems be sharply divided in the Supreme Court at the moment and a split court would result in the program remaining on a freeze and sent back to the district court in Texas, which was responsible for blocking the program in the first place.
If Obama’s executive action is upheld by the Supreme Court, the administration will move as quickly as possible to begin enrolling immigrants prior to the President’s successor taking over early next year.
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