Federal Judge Rules Trump Installation was Invalid- DACA is Reinstated for New Applicants!
By
Dev Banad Viswanath, Esq.
On Saturday, November 14, a Federal District Court Judge in New York City ruled that Acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf was improperly or unlawfully installed in the position. As a result, a memo he wrote and circulated at the end of July suspending initial applications for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) was invalidated. As a result, renewal applications could only be made by people who already had DACA, and first-time applicants were ineligible. The court's decision this week effectively annuls Mr. Wolf's order. DACA will be reinstated as a means for young people who may have been brought to the United States as minors (under the age of 16) but did not choose to do so to apply for temporary authorization to stay in the United States, work, and basically lead relatively normal, safe lives without fear of deportation, pending the government's right to appeal the decision. All of these people lack social status.
Attempts to dismantle or disrupt the DACA program have been made for more than three years under the Trump administration. The US Supreme Court decided in 2017 that DHS could not abruptly terminate DACA for all recipients. The US Federal Courts then ruled that DHS's attempt to end renewals was unconstitutional. The DHS tried once more with the most recent July 28 memo once President Trump was able to appoint an Acting Secretary with beliefs that were more in line with and willing to follow. Mr. Trump has had five DHS secretaries or acting secretaries since taking office. Only two of them were actually confirmed by the Senate in accordance with the Constitution. It would appear that the administration attempted to circumvent the legal and constitutional processes by using the title "Acting."
The Immigrant Community and advocates for immigration policies that encourage the repair of a broken system to applaud the current finding by the District Court. due to Congress' failure to pass the DREAM Act, which would have provided millions of undocumented children who came to the United States as children with the opportunity to become citizens. In turn, family-based applications would have ultimately assisted hundreds of thousands, if not millions, more. More than twice, the Senate approved the DREAM Act as part of Comprehensive Immigration Reform, and the President was willing to sign it into law. However, the measure was defeated in the House of Representatives each time it was introduced. Some people are of the opinion that pushing the DREAM Act forward as a stand-alone piece of legislation in conjunction with other immigration bills pertaining to employment, family, and immigration enforcement is the best way to get it passed. DACA was created to help the millions of people who were left out of the process and had to constantly worry about being deported because Congress didn't do anything. Therefore, DACA will continue to be a form of relief for the thousands of undocumented young people who have yet to file, regardless of whether this Court's decision this past week is upheld or appealed. Naturally, we hope that Congress and the Administration will be able to work together in 2021 to pass comprehensive and long-lasting legislation so that these immigrants can ultimately realize their full potential and take full advantage of the American promise. If you think you might be eligible for DACA protection, please get in touch with an experienced immigration lawyer.
Read the entire article at News.” 17 November 2020, USCIS, www.uscis.gov/news.
