Greg Abbott
Photographer: Alex Wong / Getty Images
Photographer: Alex Wong / Getty Images
The Department of Homeland Security, 12 days before President Joe Biden took office, struck a “binding” deal with Texas, agreeing to consult the state for 180 days before making immigration policy changes, effectively tying the hands of the new administration.
That January 8 deal between Texas Governor Greg Abbott and then Deputy Homeland Security Secretary Kenneth Cuccinelli is at the center of the first major lawsuit against the Biden government.
On Friday, the state accused the federal government of violating the agreement by planning a 100-day break in deportations, without first giving Texas a chance to object.
“Texas faces irreparable harm from having to provide educational, social, welfare, health and other expensive services to illegal aliens who remain in Texas because the defendants have stopped removing them,” said the attorney general’s office. Texas, Ken Paxton, in the state lawsuit.
U.S. District Judge Drew Tipton in Victoria, Texas, heard arguments on Friday about Paxton’s request for a temporary restraining order against the plan as the case continues. Tipton, a Donald Trump nominee, said he would rule soon.
The Justice Department argues that the state is trying to usurp the federal government’s authority over immigration in its latest deal with the Trump administration. Later on Friday, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a request for support to the Biden government, calling the Texas effort an illegal attempt to block the government’s exercise of its agency over the removal of immigrants.
‘Deeply problematic’
“Approval of this agreement would set a deeply problematic precedent,” said the ACLU in its court-friendly report. “If an outgoing DHS officer can sign the next government policy making authority for six months, why not for four years? Or eight? “
The human rights organization said that giving any credit to the deal, even temporarily, would pave the way for similar last-minute deals between agencies and states – or even external parties – with the departure of presidents.
“Our Constitution mandates that presidential elections take place every four years, with the transfer of executive power shortly thereafter,” said the ACLU. “But from a Texas point of view, a government that is leaving office never needs to relinquish power, as long as it finds a contractor willing to guarantee its political preferences.”
Texas said in its motion for a restraining order that its agreement with the Trump administration was “mutually beneficial” and was reached to promote “cooperation and coordination”. The state argues that it has a unique exposure to immigration issues because of its long border with Mexico and therefore deserves an opinion on changes in immigration.
The Justice Department calls this unacceptable veto power.