SCOTUS Refuses to Rescue Obama on Executive Amnesty

The United States Supreme Court has denied President Obama’s request to rehear the executive amnesty case.

“The State of Texas’ position has been validated by the U.S. Supreme Court today as they denied the Obama administration’s petition to rehear the immigration case,” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said in response. “Rewriting national immigration law requires the full and careful consideration of Congress. This is the latest setback to the president’s attempt to expand executive power and another victory for those who believe in the Constitution’s separation of powers and the rule of law.”

As reported by Breitbart Texas on June 23, the nation’s highest court left in place a block of President Obama’s unlawful executive amnesty dictate. The eight-member court has a vacancy left by the death of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. On that date, the Court stalled the federal government’s executive amnesty order with a 4-4 vote. The tied decision in United States v. Texas, et al. left in place the lower court decision.

These decisions highlight the importance of the upcoming presidential election in the country. While the president may have lost this round in his over-reaching use of executive power, the next president will select a replacement for conservative U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Scalia died in mid-February while staying at a ranch in west Texas, as reported by Breitbart Texas at the time. Republicans have refused to vote on Obama’s nominee, Judge Merrick Garland, Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, as reported by Breitbart News.

As reported by Breitbart Texas, the Fifth Circuit issued a ruling in November 2015 effectively putting the brakes on President Obama’s November 2014 executive amnesty order. The Fifth Circuit ruled that the lower federal district court did not err in granting a halt to Obama’s executive amnesty program. U.S. District Court Judge Andrew Hanen previously issued the order stopping the president’s actions, as reported by Breitbart Texas.

President Obama used executive action to dictate that the DAPA program (Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents) be implemented. Then-Attorney General Greg Abbott (now Texas Governor) filed suit challenging the executive order and led a coalition of 26 states to fight the effort. The case involved the issues of the proper scope of presidential power to bypass Congress, the Immigration and Nationality Act passed by Congress, and violations of the Administrative Procedure Act and other federal laws.

As noted by Breitbart News, the Court declined to rule on the notice-and-comment provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). The APA requires a time period for notice to and comment from the public before issuing rules that create public policy mirroring law. A ruling that the federal government violated the provisions would have provided for transparency and government accountability, he wrote.

Lana Shadwick is a contributing writer and legal analyst for Breitbart Texas. She has served as a prosecutor and associate judge in Texas. Follow her on Twitter @LanaShadwick2.

This article has been updated to reflect additional information.