Now that the current Supreme Court term has come to an end with a number of major rulings, the nation’s highest court on Friday announced that in its next term, it will tackle whether Donald Trump can end a program that protects from deportation young people who were brought to the U.S. as children without documentation.
Young people, many of whom have lived in the U.S. since they were babies, who were protected during the Obama administration under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, were again put at risk when Trump decided to put an end to the program.
As the Washington Post reports, lower federal appeals courts have ruled the Trump administration cannot go through with its DACA plans, but the Trump White House is appealing. On Friday, the Supreme Court said it would review the matter during its next term beginning this coming fall.
The lower courts have said the Trump administration has provided no clear reasoning to justify ending DACA, only saying that it believes the program, begun by Obama in 2012 by proclamation, is illegal.
As the Post explains, Team Trump is looking to have the high court involved:
The administration has been eager to get the issue before the Supreme Court, where it believes the more conservative wing will be on its side.
Solicitor General Noel J. Francisco, representing the administration at the Supreme Court, said in a brief that the cases “concern the Executive Branch’s authority to revoke a discretionary policy of non-enforcement that is sanctioning an ongoing violation of federal immigration law by nearly 700,000 aliens.”
But so far, more than one court has ruled against the administration. Following the Supreme Court’s announcement, the attorney general of California, one of the parties that have sued to keep DACA safe, emphasized that point, the Post reports:
“DACA reflects our nation’s commitment to helping hardworking people and creates hope and opportunity for a new generation — many of whom were brought to our country as toddlers,” [California Attorney General Xavier] Becerra said in a statement after the Supreme Court announcement.
“So far, both lower courts in our legal fight to protect DACA have agreed with us that the Trump Administration’s attempt to end it was unlawful.”
Nearly 700,000 young people have been protected under DACA, which provides protection from deportation as well as permission to legally work as long as recipients follow all regulations and don’t break any laws.
As the Post reports, the Supreme Court:
accepted three cases, which will be consolidated for hearing in the new term that starts in October. They are Department of Homeland Security v. Regents of the University of California; Trump v. NAACP and McAleenan v. Vidal.