Biden: Verdict against 'Dreamers' immigration program 'deeply disappointing'
US President Joe Biden said Saturday he was "deeply disappointed" by a court ruling that partially reversed a major reform by former President Barack Obama aimed at protecting young immigrants who arrive in the United States as children.
Biden confirmed that the Justice Department would appeal the ruling, which he described as "deeply disappointing" and "plunging hundreds of thousands of young immigrants into an uncertain future."
"Only Congress can guarantee a lasting solution by granting a path to citizenship for those who dream of coming to the United States as children," he added.
The decision relates to DACA's program adopted in 2012 to de-legalize immigrants under the age of 30, who had illegally entered the United States as a child, and to build their future in this country.
About 700,000 young people benefit from this program that prevents deportation and gives them a Social Security number necessary to work, drive, or study in the United States.
But a federal judge in Houston issued a ruling Friday evening that said the former president had exceeded his powers by decree after failing to pass this reform in Congress.
The judge's ruling does not extend to people enrolled in the program, but it does prohibit a new batch of young people from benefiting from it, which is another severe blow after the initial attempts to drop this protection.
In 2017, Republican President Donald Trump, who had made fighting illegal immigration a priority, decided to end DACA, declaring it “illegal.”
The courts, to which the file was urgently submitted, suspended his decision and granted this category of persons an additional period of time.
The Trump administration had appealed the decision to the Supreme Court, which declared in 2020 that it was wrong for procedural reasons.
Once in the White House, Joe Biden, who had served as Vice President under Obama for eight years, proposed a sweeping immigration reform that would, among other things, include the status of these young people in law.
"Only Congress can chart a path toward citizenship for these young people and provide them with the guarantees and stability they need and deserve," he said in his statement Saturday.
These young people fare well among the population that considers they are not responsible for their parents' choices.
But Republicans, who have a crippling minority in Congress, are so opposed to other provisions of the reform that its adoption is as unlikely.
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