The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals voted Tuesday to continue to block implementation of President Obama’s executive action to defer deportation and grant work permits to some 4 million illegal immigrants. Numerous attempts have been made since November to overturn the executive decision, including threats against funding the Department of Homeland Security and lawsuits from 26 states. In February, Texas Judge Andrew Hanen issued a preliminary injunction on Obama’s program to shield the undocumented parents of U.S. citizens from deportation. On Tuesday, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals denied the Administration’s request to lift the injunction; voting 2-1 that Texas has legal standing to sue. Texas cites injury as a result of these immigration reform measures, claiming that the impact of giving drivers licenses to illegal immigrants would be too costly, and thus injurious to the state. The Administration’s request to limit the injunction to the states filing the lawsuits was also denied, halting any progress that may come of the executive action, for the time being. The appeals court did not deal with the substance of the executive action, on which Judge Hanen has yet to rule.
