Judge Blocks Biden's Immigrant Spouse Program

Facts

• A Texas federal judge on Monday temporarily blocked a Biden administration policy that offers a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants whose spouse is a US citizen.^[1]
• The administrative stay comes in response to a suit filed by 16 states — who all have Republican attorneys general — accusing the administration of bypassing Congress to enact immigration policy.^[2]
• The policy, announced in June, allows undocumented spouses (and their children) who have lived in the country for at least a decade, have not been previously placed on parole, or pose a threat to public or national safety to apply for permanent resident status without needing to leave the US.^[3]
• The government can't approve applications but can continue to accept them under this stay, which is currently valid for 14 days but could be extended.^[4]
• The judge has set an October 10 deadline for both sides of the case to file briefs.^[5]

Sources: ^[1]New York Times, ^[2]Associated Press, ^[3]USA Today, ^[4]CBS and ^[5]FOX News.

Narratives

• Democratic narrative, as provided by Guardian. This stay is a tragedy perpetrated by a judge appointed by the famously immigrant-hating former Pres. Donald Trump. Neither Texas nor any of the other court-shopping, Republican-led states — who have so far failed to prove this policy would cause any harm — should be able to injure those families who are just trying to live in the country they've contributed services and taxes to for more than a decade.
• Republican narrative, as provided by Breitbart. This attempt by the Biden administration to, without Congressional approval, grant amnesty to hundreds of thousands of people who've entered the US illegally had to be stopped. Polls show that the majority of Americans wisely favor deporting those here illegally rather than giving them a pass. Only corporations looking to take advantage of cheap labor favor Biden's illegal policy.

Predictions