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A federal judge on Friday temporarily blocked the Biden administration from suspending the Public Health Order from May 42 to May 23 – stopping the administration from a move that witnessed significant opposition from Republicans and Democrats amid fears it would exacerbate the border crisis.
Judge Robert Somerhace of the West Louisiana County issued a preliminary injunction against the Biden administration’s plan to terminate the order on May 23. This was in response to a case from two dozen Republican states, led by Arizona, Louisiana and Missouri.
“Today’s decision is a significant victory, as Title 42 is one of the few policies that actually works,” said Arizona Attorney General Mark Burnovic. “I am grateful to the court for upholding the rule of law and helping us maintain a certain level of sanity as we continue to fight the border crisis created by Biden.
FEDERAL JUDGE EXTENDS ORDER TO BLOCK BIDEN ADMINISTRATOR FROM CANCELLATION OF TITLE 42 BEFORE HEARING
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) announced in April that the March 2020 order, which has been used since March 2020 to expel most migrants to the southern border due to the COVID-19 pandemic, expires in late May.
“After reviewing the current state of public health and the increased availability of tools to combat COVID-19 (such as highly effective vaccines and therapeutic agents), the CDC director decided that an order suspending the right to introduce migrants to the United States was no longer necessary, “the agency said.
The move sparked outrage from both Democrats and Republicans, who warned that the move would increase illegal border immigration and release more people in the United States.
DHS acknowledged these concerns, saying it plans up to 18,000 people a day. However, he also said he believes he will reduce the number of people encountered at the border over time when he re-applies criminal sanctions for re-crossing the border.
A number of moderate Democrats have joined Republicans in signing legislation that prevents the administration from revoking the order within 60 days after the CDC said the national state of emergency for COVID-19 was over. This law has not yet been passed in the Senate.
INTERNAL CBP DOC WARNS OF “SIGNIFICANT SAFETY CONSEQUENCES” IN TITLE 42 LIFTING, CARTEL HOLDING OF CENTRAL AMERICA
The Republicans’ lawsuit seeks an injunction alleging that the revocation of the order violates the Administrative Procedure Act, which requires a deadline for notification and comment and also prohibits actions considered “arbitrary and capricious.”
The case alleges that the administration failed to estimate or account for state spending. They cite “the increased health care costs for foreigners infected with COVID-19 and the cost of increased illegal immigration caused by the termination order and the presence of a much larger number of conditionally released aliens with unfounded asylum applications who were forced into in the United States because of the termination order. “
“This suit is causing an inevitable man-made disaster: the abrupt removal of the only safety valve preventing this administration’s catastrophic border policy from turning into an unlimited catastrophe.” the complaint read.
Somerhace, in his order, said the record supported the state’s position, “that the termination order will lead to increased border crossings and that, based on government estimates, the increase could be up to three times.” He also agreed with states that the abolition of Title 42 would increase spending on health and education – and said the government did not dispute that claim.
“In short, the plaintiff states have demonstrated that the termination order will affect their ‘quasi-sovereign’ interests based on their impact on their health systems and their interest in the health and well-being of their citizens,” he said.
The judge also agreed with the states that the repeal of Title 42 was subject to the ACA and that the government had not overcome the “presumption of review under the APA”.
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Trump-nominated Somerhais was widely considered likely to issue the order, especially after he issued a temporary restraining order preventing Homeland Security from passing Title 42 by removing migrants through a process called “expedited removal.”
The Ministry of Justice is expected to appeal the decision of the federal district court judge, and the Supreme Court may be asked to rule on it by urgent order, but this may not happen in the next few weeks.
Meanwhile, the number of migrants encountered at the southern border remains at high levels unseen for decades. There were over 234,000 encounters with migrants in April, compared to 178,000 in April 2021 and only 17,106 in April 2020.
Fox News’ Bill Myers contributed to this report.
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