More than 20 states filed a temporary restraining order Thursday to prevent the Biden administration from lifting Title 42, a Trump-era policy that allows migrants to be deported at the border and prevents them from seeking asylum.
The movement for a temporary restraining order is part of a lawsuit that 21 states have filed against the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in opposition to the administration’s decision to rescind the controversial policy.
The Biden Administration rescinded Title 42 earlier this month, but the rule won’t be lifted until May 23. It was first implemented in March 2020, at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In addition to requesting a temporary restraining order, the filing argues that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has already stopped using Title 42 when migrants arrive from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, citing a report from FoxNews.
The plaintiffs said the department is instead processing immigrants through Title 8, which is a federal code related to immigration.
The states said the “premature implementation of the Title 42 Termination Order” means the effects the plaintiffs were trying to avoid may already be occurring.
“This premature implementation of the Title 42 Termination Order unfortunately means that the irreparable harm that the States sought to prevent through their preliminary injunction motion may already be occurring now,” the filing read.
“Given that the enormous potential harms identified in the States’ preliminary injunction are likely already occurring, the States respectfully request that this Court enter a Temporary Restraining Order (“TRO”) against any implementation of the Termination Order before from its effective date of May 23. , and require Defendants to continue to prosecute migrants pursuant to Title 42 instead of Title 8,” the filing adds.
The plaintiffs also asked that DHS “report its activities on an expedited basis so that States can consider whether it is appropriate to seek further relief.” They are specifically requesting an affidavit, filed by April 24, explaining what actions, if any, they have taken to enforce the rescission of Title 42.
Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich (R), one of the plaintiffs in the case, accused the Biden administration of “bumping noses with the American people and the rule of law.”
“Once again, the Biden Administration is flouting the American people and the rule of law,” Brnovich said in a statement. “This recklessness cannot be allowed to continue.”
Attorneys general from Louisiana, Missouri, Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming also signed the order. temporary restriction.
The Hill has reached out to the CDC for comment.
Reference-thehill.com