Austin: On Thursday, a U.S. judge in Texas blocked President Joe Biden’s “Keeping Families Together” program, which aimed to offer a path to citizenship for immigrant spouses of U.S. citizens. U.S. District Judge J. Campbell Barker ruled that the program, which affects around 500,000 immigrants who entered the country illegally but are married to U.S. citizens, exceeded the scope of Biden’s executive authority.
The program, introduced by Biden in June, was intended to support family unity by providing undocumented spouses of American citizens with a legal path to remain in the U.S. However, shortly after its launch in August, Judge Barker halted the initiative in response to a legal challenge led by Texas and a coalition of Republican-led states. The lawsuit argued that the program, announced just months before Biden’s decision not to seek re-election, improperly extended federal powers.
With Vice President Kamala Harris recently losing the presidential race to former President Donald Trump, the fate of Biden’s program remains uncertain. Trump, who has a history of hardline immigration policies, is expected to roll back initiatives like Keeping Families Together, which his campaign has denounced as “mass amnesty.”
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Immigration remains a top concern for American voters, and a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll indicates that a majority expect Trump to initiate extensive deportations upon taking office in January.
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The Biden administration may still challenge Judge Barker’s ruling through an appeal, although the White House has yet to comment on the decision.
