BALITANG America shared with kababayans on The Filipino Channel the not-so-good news, especially for those who are hoping that President Barack Obama’s executive order on immigration will finally be given the green light for implementation.
Just a day before its supposed implementation that would benefit up to five million immigrants who are living in the United States unlawfully, US District Judge Andrew Hanen made the ruling, effectively rejecting the U.S. government’s appeal to allow to the Obama executive programs on immigration to resume while broader issues are being litigated.
Last November, the Obama administration announced through an executive order, that it will expand the pool of people who could receive some legal immigration standing to include the parents of US citizens or legal permanent residents.
Obama likewise wanted to increase the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program — designed to help so-called Dreamers — from two years to three years.
Judge Hanen first put a temporary hold on Obama’s action seeking to protect qualified undocumented immigrants from deportation in February. This action was in response to the demand of 26 states that challenged President Obama’s efforts.
In this new ruling, the Texas judge argued that he remained convinced that issuing the order was the right thing to do.
As the LA Times reported: “To hear the White House tell it, a federal judge in Texas ‘has wrongly continued to prevent those lawful, common-sense policies from taking effect”.”
Meanwhile, Judge Hanen says of Obama administration attorneys: “Whether by ignorance, omission, purposeful misdirection, or because they were misled by their clients, the attorneys for the government misrepresented the facts.”
The Justice Department had already appealed to a higher court, the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans, which will hear arguments on whether to lift the order next week.
GOOD NEWS, however, for kababayans in California who are undocumented. As Balitang America reported, Democratic lawmakers in California who are frustrated over the lack of progress in immigration reform in Washington, are leading the charge to extend health care and other rights and benefits to undocumented immigrants living in the state.
These are:
SB 4, by Sen. Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens): “Expands health care coverage for illegal immigrants by enrolling some in MediCal and offering unsubsidized plans through the Covered California exchange to others.
SB 10, by Lara “Establishes the California Office of New Americans to help guide immigrants through confusing bureaucracies.”
SB 600, by Sen. Richard Pan (D-Sacramento): “Expands civil rights protections for illegal immigrants by making it unlawful for businesses to discriminate against them.”
SB 674, by Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon (D-Los Angeles) and Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins (D-San Diego): “Ensures all immigrant victims of crimes are offered assistance applying for special federal visas.”
AB 60, by Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, (D-San Diego): “Protects illegal immigrants from attorneys who demand payments for services related to pending legislation.”
AB 622, by Assemblyman Roger Hernandez, (D-West Covina): “Strengthens state Labor Code protections for all workers by limiting misuse of E-Verify, a federal program designed to prevent the undocumented from gaining employment.”
AB 899, by Assemblyman Marc Levine (D-San Rafael): “Protects immigrant children’s records from unauthorized disclosure to federal immigration authorities.”
AB 900, by Levine: “Aligns state law with federal law, allowing the maximum number of youth to receive humanitarian relief through special visas.”
AB 1343, by Assemblyman Tony Thurmond (D-Richmond): “Helps illegal immigrants avoid detention and deportation by federal immigration authorities.”
AB 1352, by Assemblywoman Susan Talamantes Eggman (D-Stockton): “Prevents immigrants who complete drug rehabilitation and other court-ordered programs from being detained or deported.”
But as Balitang America Correspondent Henni Espinosa reported, some lawmakers are not as accommodating to undocumented immigrants in Austin, Texas.
The state lawmakers, headed by Senator Donna Campbell, are challenging a law that allows undocumented students to pay in-state tuition, if they lived in the United States for at least three years and have graduated from Texas high schools.
Campbell contended: “We have a moral obligation to take care of our own Texas citizens first.”
What do you think?
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Gel Santos Relos is the anchor of TFC’s “Balitang America.” Views and opinions expressed by the author in this column are are solely those of the author and not of Asian Journal and ABS-CBN-TFC. For comments, go to www.TheFil-AmPerspective.com, https://www.facebook.com/Gel.Santos.Relos
