#DACA court update: today all the parties in the case by Texas challenging the legality of DACA filed briefs at the 5th Circuit on what the new DACA regulation means for the case. A thread on those briefs & what could come next 🧵: Nothing has changed today. DACA renewals remain open to folks with current DACA. Folks with DACA can apply for advanced parole. And first-time DACA applications, sadly, can be accepted but not adjudicated. Today was just an important set of court papers being filed. ⚖️📰 /2

Here's a court update I did NOT expect to give. The 5th circuit issued a couple of orders today on the Remain in Mexico (RMX) case. First they remanded the case to the district court. But then, they didn't really remand it. Why? /1 Because they inexplicably denied the DOJ motion to issue the mandate forthwith (aka right away). The other side (the states of TX & MO) did not even oppose the request for the mandate to issue right away & have the case go immediately back to the district court. /2

That's a wrap on the oral arguments in the Remain in Mexico case today! Here are 5 things you need to know about the case and what happened today. #SafeNotStranded A 🧵 1⃣ Tens of thousands of people have suffered under the cruel Remain In Mexico program. There are huge legal issues at play in this case, but the impact of this case on people seeking safety is the most important outcome.

The Solicitor General is arguing for the U.S. today. She begins by underscoring the need for Presidents to be able to make policy judgements, not courts. (Subtext: elections matters & courts should not thwart the will of voters). I'll put my takes here on today's argument. J. Thomas is asking questions about the statutory holding of the lower courts. This is a sleeper issue in the case--the judge below read a portion of the INA in a way that we have never seen it read--to require mandatory detention of asylum seekers. 🤯

It's been a day in immigration court land. 🤯Within hours of one another we got dueling decisions from 2 different courts in cases involving Title 42, an absurd, cruel policy that has made a mockery of our asylum laws. Here's a 🧵on what happened today. /1 This morning, the DC Circuit ruled in the Huisha Huisha case brought by a courageous group of plaintiffs & attorneys challenging the use of T42 against families. The decision was a win b/c the court said T42 should not be applied to expel families to persecution or torture./2

#Breaking: The 5th Circuit shamefully failed to stop a district court decision that will force the government to resurrect Trump’s failed #RemainInMexico program as early as this weekend. Court watchers and advocates should care about this ruling. A thread 🧵about why: 1/9 TX is using the playbook states like CA & others employed in the Trump years to try to stop Biden from getting rid of terrible Trump policies. Gov Abbott thinks scoring points by scapegoating immigrants is a winning strategy & continues to blame immigrants for his failures. 2/9

I am literally over the moon🌛 to be reading the court order in our Gomez case. After litigation against the Trump and Biden administrations, we finally have a court order requiring the government to issue 9,095 diversity visas that had been held aside for about a year. /1 These are individuals who applied for and won the diversity lottery back in fiscal year 2020…. In other words, they have been waiting about 2 years for this day. Let’s do a rewind to remember how we got here. /2

As expected, Judge Hanen has issued an order that is out of sync with other legal interpretations on #DACA and effectively halts the program for new applicants. A thread on what the order does -- & doesn’t -- mean 1/8 First, the order should underscore for everyone watching that the clock ⏰ is ticking for Congress to act on #immigration. They needed to act 20 years ago, and they REALLY need to act now. But here’s what folks need to know now 2/8

Wonderful news out of the @TheJusticeDept today! AG Garland has reversed Matter of Castro-Tum, the decision by former AG Sessions that ended the use of administrative closure in immigration courts. This is a very important return to fairness in immigration courts. My take. /1 Here is the decision for my fellow legal nerds. justice.gov/eoir/page/file… Administrative closure is a long-used tool that allowed immigration judges to close immigration proceedings when agreed by all parties--and when the equities of the case warranted it. /2

Today the Biden administration took another important step to dismantle the cruel Remain in Mexico or MPP program created by Trump. Good on Biden, but we this is merely the 1st mile in a marathon that the administration needs to run to restore humanity to our asylum system. 1/9 Today’s news 📰 will allow folks outside of the U.S. who had their MPP case terminated or who were ordered deported in absentia to register & apply for processing into the U.S. More info here: dhs.gov/migrant-protec… 2/9

Here's my take on what today's memo from @AliMayorkas formally ending the MPP program means--and what it still leaves left to be done.

For those wanting to nerd out. Here's the memo: dhs.gov/sites/default/…

1/7 Why did this happen today? Remember that on Feb. 2, 2021 Biden issued an executive order that paused the MPP program and required the Secretary of DHS to promptly review the program & decide whether to formally terminate it. That formal termination came today via this memo. 2/7

It's been quite the Friday in immigration news 🗞️. Here are my hot takes on the asylum news from today.

Speed & efficiency are great values for vaccine distribution but they are off base for asylum. Here's why: the cost of going too fast = sending people to their deaths. 1/10 The day's 1st announcement was from @TheJusticeDept & @DHSgov creating a rocket docket for families seeking asylum who are exempted from the cruel Title 42 policy that expels most families seeking safety. (They call it a "dedicated docket" but if it walks like a 🦆 ...) 2/10

#Breaking: some MORE Friday immigration news. Today, we escalated our effort to make sure the U.S. will #WelcomeWithDignity immigrant kids who were involved with MPP by asking the court to order the Biden admin to give these children their Congressionally mandated rights. 1/10 Remember MPP? It forced 70,000+ people seeking safety in the U.S. to live in squalid, dangerous conditions along the U.S.-Mexico border. The Biden admin has promised to stop MPP & has made progress on that, which we celebrate. But we're a long way from the end of MPP’s ills. 2/10

🎉Victory! @POTUS has reversed the Trump Health Care Insurance Ban. This ban, which has long been enjoined due to our litigation, was a Trump policy designed to separate immigrants from their family members on the basis of wealth, health or status. whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/… 1/5 We joined forces with @latnet_PDX @ThinkLawLab @AILANational @SidleyLaw & a set of plaintiffs in Oct. 2019 to fight back against this shameful Ban. Because of these plaintiffs we were able to prevent this disaster of a policy from ever taking effect. When we fight, we win. 2/5

Sanchez argument has started & counsel for TPS recipients is up. If you're listening there's a lot of talk about what the TPS statute says & if it meant to allow TPS recipients to adjust status based on certain words. It's important to remember what's at stake in human terms. /1 The TPS recipients in these consolidated cases have been in the U.S. for 20 years on TPS. Adjustment of status allows them to get green cards and stability in the country that is already their home. Of course, Congress could fix this by passing the #PromiseAct. /2

Here's my Friday afternoon decoder ring for today's Refugee cap debacle. 🧵

First, these aren't numbers. Refugees are people fleeing persecution and in the last 4 years our country has shamefully turned its back on refugees. We need to #WelcomeWithDignity /1 Biden pledged to reverse the historically low levels of refugee admissions set by Trump. Trump set a shamefully low cap at 15,000 refugees. Biden pledged to set a humane number of 62,500 refugees this year. But he backtracked & today announced he would keep Trump's number. /2

Going to put some thoughts on the Texas v. U.S. hearing here. Nina Perales @MALDEF and the state of NJ, both representing #DACA recipients have already given brief remarks. The Biden DOJ is speaking now and is discussing the Friday announcement that DHS would begin a rulemaking on #DACA and saying at minimum it will make substantive changes to the program.

Some Friday afternoon #DACA news. @TheJusticeDept just filed a notice before J. Hanen in the case brought by Texas challenging the legality of the DACA program. In that notice, DOJ says DHS intends to issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking proposing a new regulation on DACA /1 A status conference is set for March 30 @11 am CT in Houston where the parties will discuss what happens next. Just as a recap, the parties here are: Texas & other states trying to end the DACA program; @MALDEF & @NewJerseyOAG who have intervened to defend DACA & DOJ. /2

So, lots of immigration policy news tonight, and unlike the bad days of the Trump administration, these announcements are worthy of a nuanced look. Here’s my two cents
🪙🪙 1/9: First, it’s clear that the Biden team has smart, thoughtful people with deep expertise working on immigration policy. They understand that #immigration is not just a @DHSgov thing, and they’re willing to look at all facets of the issue in every agency 2/9.

Here are my take aways from the the govt brief filed in the Batalla #DACA case now. As a recap, the Court ruled on Nov. 14 that the Wolf memo gutting DACA valid was issued without legal authority. The question in these briefs is what the court should require the govt to do. /1 THIS JUMPED OUT AT ME. 65,800 is the number of 1-year DACA grants and work permits issued since the unlawful Wolf memo. That's 65,800 people who got 1-year grants unlawfully and now should get 2-year grants /2

Sharing some highlights from today's decision in our Batalla case on this thread.
1) Court holds that @DHS_Wolf was not lawfully appointed as Secretary of DHS
2) That means the gutting of the DACA program by Wolf is invalid.
3) The court certified a nationwide class 1/ @DHS_Wolf What does this mean for current #DACA recipients and those eligible to apply?
--The memo making DACA renewals only 1 years instead of 2 years is invalid
--The memo saying that new applicants cannot apply for DACA is invalid
--Advance parole should be restored to 2012 terms
2/