Texas federal judge blocks Biden anti-deportation order

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced on Tuesday that Texas has emerged victorious in a lawsuit against the federal government regarding a recent executive order halting deportations issued by President Joe Biden.

The executive order placed a moratorium on deportations from the United States for 100 days, with exceptions for people "suspected of terrorism or espionage, or otherwise poses a danger to the national security of the United States." Biden issued the order shortly after being sworn in as president on Jan 20, according to the Texas Tribune. It was one of four executive orders regarding immigration made in Biden's first day of office.

The victory, however, is only temporary, as Judge Drew Tipton only halted the order until the case could be heard. The policy was expected to take effect on Friday.

"VICTORY," Paxton wrote on Twitter. "Texas is the FIRST state in the nation to bring a lawsuit against the Biden Admin. AND WE WON. Within 6 days of Biden’s inauguration, Texas has HALTED his illegal deportation freeze. *This* was a seditious left-wing insurrection. And my team and I stopped it."

Paxton's suit was intended to halt the order halting deportations, an issue that Texas feels closely due to its proximity to Mexico, a border through which many immigrants enter illegally.

Biden's intention was to take action to alter the enforcement activities of the agencies for Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the US Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Paxton, however, said that Biden's order is a violation of the Constitution, as well as additional federal laws, and Texas' terms of agreement with the Department of Homeland Security created under former President Donald Trump.

The complaint read that "When DHS fails to remove illegal aliens in compliance with federal law, Texas faces significant costs, a higher number of illegal aliens in Texas leads to budgetary harms, including higher education and healthcare costs." Texas also alleged that it violated the responsibility of the President to ensure that the laws of the United States are "faithfully executed."

The ruling comes as an early blow to the Biden administration, which made immigration reform a key campaign promise. Biden has already stated that he would help create a pathway to citizenship for the millions of illegal immigrants residing in the United States. While there are no official statistics documenting the number of illegal immigrants living in the United States, estimates generally range between 10-12 million people, roughly three percent of the US population.