XPost: alt.fan.sean-hannity, talk.politics.misc, alt.politics.democrats   
   From: obama@uchicago.edu   
      
   A federal appeals court refused Tuesday to lift a temporary hold   
   on President Barack Obama's executive action that could shield   
   as many as 5 million immigrants illegally living in the U.S.   
   from deportation.   
      
   The 2-1 ruling by a panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of   
   Appeal is far from the final word; more arguments on the merits   
   of the case are tentatively set at the 5th Circuit for early   
   July.   
      
   But immigrant advocates decried the continued roadblock on   
   Obama's actions. And, White House spokeswoman Brandi Hoffine   
   said the two-judge majority in Tuesday's ruling "chose to   
   misinterpret the facts and the law."   
      
   Obama announced the executive action in November, saying lack of   
   action by Congress forced him to make sweeping changes to   
   immigration rules on his own.   
      
   Twenty-six states sued to block the plan, led by Texas. They   
   argue that Obama acted outside his authority and that the   
   changes would force them to invest more in law enforcement,   
   health care and education.   
      
   U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen sided with the states and, from   
   his court in Brownsville, Texas, issued a temporary injunction   
   on Feb. 16 to block the plan from taking effect while the   
   lawsuit works its way through the courts.   
      
   Justice Department lawyers sought a stay while they appealed the   
   injunction. They argued that keeping the temporary hold   
   interfered with the Homeland Security Department's ability to   
   protect the U.S. and secure the nation's borders. They also said   
   immigration policy is a domain of the federal government, not   
   the states.   
      
   But 5th Circuit judges Jerry Smith and Jennifer Walker said that   
   the federal government lawyers are unlikely to succeed on the   
   merits of the appeal.   
      
   Smith and Elrod rejected the government's argument that it has   
   the discretion to selectively defer legal action against   
   immigrants. The Obama policy, the ruling said, goes beyond   
   simple non-enforcement. "It is the affirmative act of conferring   
   'lawful presence' on a class of unlawfully present aliens,"   
   Smith wrote.   
      
   Judge Stephen Higginson dissented, saying the administration had   
   not abused its discretion. He also noted congressional inaction   
   on immigration issues.   
      
   Smith and Walker were nominated to the court by Republican   
   presidents, Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush; Higginson, by   
   Obama.   
      
   The White House said its appeal of the preliminary injunction   
   will proceed on an expedited basis in the 5th Circuit while the   
   Justice Department reviews Tuesday's opinion and contemplates   
   other possible steps.   
      
   "This decision is a victory for those committed to preserving   
   the rule of law in America," Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton   
   said in a statement.   
      
   Marielena Hincapie, executive director of the National   
   Immigration Law Center, said the decision will result in   
   confusion and fear in immigrant communities. But she predicted   
   eventual victory in the courts.   
      
   The first of Obama's orders — to expand a program that protects   
   young immigrants from deportation if they were brought to the   
   U.S. illegally as children — was set to take effect Feb. 18. The   
   other major part, extending deportation protections to parents   
   of U.S. citizens and permanent residents who have been in the   
   country for some years, had been scheduled to begin May 19.   
      
   Hanen issued his injunction believing that neither action had   
   taken effect. But the Justice Department later told Hanen that   
   more than 108,000 people had already received three-year   
   reprieves from deportation as well as work permits. Hanen said   
   the federal government had been "misleading," but he declined to   
   sanction the government's attorneys. Earlier this month, the   
   U.S. government told Hanen it had mistakenly awarded three-year   
   work permits to another 2,000 people.   
      
   Along with Texas, the states seeking to block Obama's action are   
   Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana,   
   Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana,   
   Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma,   
   South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia and   
   Wisconsin.   
      
   http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/court-lift-hold-obama-   
   immigration-action-31315297   
      
   The Obama administration is an outlaw organization seeking to   
   destroy the United States of America.   
       
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)