A federal judge on March 8 dismissed a lawsuit filed by Republican-led states against a Biden administration program that has allowed tens of thousands of immigrants from four countries to enter the United States.
U.S. District Judge Drew Tipton ruled that the plaintiffs—a coalition of 21 states—“have not proven that Texas has suffered an injury” because of the program and therefore lacked standing to maintain this lawsuit.
The Biden administration announced the program in January 2023, allowing up to 30,000 people from Cuba, Nicaragua, Haiti, and Venezuela to legally enter the United States each month.
Under the program, immigrants must apply ahead of time for parole by providing the name of a person who will agree to financially support them if they’re approved.
The immigrant must also pass a background check and present themselves at a Port of Entry, rather than entering the United States illegally.
In his ruling, Judge Tipton said that the number of people illegally entering the United States from the four countries has “dramatically decreased” by “as much as 44 percent” since the program was implemented.
“This case is dismissed without prejudice. The Court denies all requested relief and will enter a final judgment by separate order,” the judge added.
Some 234,000 Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans had entered the United States through the program as of November 2023, according to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) statistics.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has praised the ruling, calling the parole program “a key element of our efforts to address the unprecedented level of migration throughout our hemisphere.”
“We are pleased that today’s court ruling means that the parole processes for individuals from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela will continue,” he said in a statement.
The Texas-Led Lawsuit
Ken Paxton, the Republican attorney general of Texas, led the coalition of 21 states in filing the lawsuit in January 2023. They claimed that the parole programs go beyond the permissible scope of the law.“The Department’s parole power is exceptionally limited, having been curtailed by Congress multiple times, and can be used only on a case-by-case basis for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit.
The states also argued that the program is causing them to spend “significant amounts of money” to provide education and health care services to immigrants. Texas said the program costs the state “tens of millions dollars annually,” according to the complaint.
In a statement on Jan. 24, 2023, Mr. Paxton said the Biden administration’s immigration policies had created a humanitarian crisis that has overwhelmed states and local communities.
“The Biden open borders agenda has created a humanitarian crisis that is increasing crime and violence in our streets, overwhelming local communities, and worsening the opioid crisis,” he said.
“This unlawful amnesty program, which will invite hundreds of thousands of aliens into the U.S. every year, will only make this immigration crisis drastically worse.”
Joining Texas in the action were Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming.
