The US Supreme Court has allowed Texas to start arresting and deporting people who enter the country illegally, refusing to block a new law that the Biden administration says will be an unprecedented intrusion on federal power to set immigration policy.
The US Supreme Court has allowed Texas to begin arresting and deporting individuals who enter the country illegally, declining to block a new law that the Biden administration argues will significantly intrude on federal authority to establish immigration policy.
In a decision that saw three dissents, the justices turned down the administration's request to pause the Texas law while a legal battle proceeds in a lower court.
Consistent with customary practice for emergency orders, the court did not provide a rationale. However, two key justices in the majority, Amy Coney Barrett and Brett Kavanaugh, indicated that the administration could potentially return to the high court in the coming weeks to seek another attempt to halt the law.
Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented. Sotomayor, writing for herself and Jackson, expressed concern that the court's decision "invites further chaos and crisis in immigration enforcement."
This rejection represents a setback for President Joe Biden's administration on a pivotal issue in the 2024 presidential election campaign. Polls indicate that voters have given Biden low ratings for his handling of the border, making immigration one of his major vulnerabilities as he prepares for a likely rematch with former President Donald Trump.
Texas is asserting expansive new powers to address illegal immigration, arguing that the US Constitution empowers the state to defend itself against such influxes. Texas cites a constitutional provision allowing states to engage in war and take other actions in the event of an "actual invasion."
The law is set to "profoundly alter the status quo that has existed between the United States and the states in the context of immigration for almost 150 years," said Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar, the administration's top courtroom lawyer, in a court filing.
Texas officials, led by Republican Governor Greg Abbott, argued that the law is necessary to address an unprecedented surge at the border.
"Texas is the nation’s first-line defense against transnational violence and has been forced to deal with the deadly consequences of the federal government’s inability or unwillingness to protect the border," the state argued in court documents.
