{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://degette.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/degette-joins-members-of-house-and-senate-to-file-amicus-brief-in-us", "DeGette Joins Members of House and Senate to File Amicus Brief in U.S. Supreme Court to Support Obama Administrations Immigration Executive Actions", "2015-12-04", "2015", "2015-12", "Democrat", "House", "CO", "Diana DeGette", "D000197", "degette.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, DC  Congresswoman Diana DeGette (CO-01) joined 184 House Democrats and 34 Senate Democrats to file an amicus brief last night in support of the petition for certiorari to the Supreme Court seeking review of the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling, which blocked the Secretary of Homeland Security from implementing the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA) program and expanding the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. These programs were announced by President Obama last November as part of his Executive Actions on Immigration.\nPresident Obamas decision to review immigration enforcement priorities and re-focus our resources on national security threats and violent criminals is both in line with the Constitution and with the views of the majority of Americans, said Rep. DeGette. I am proud to file this amicus brief in support of the Presidents actions, and I look forward to working with my colleagues here in the House to finally address the need for comprehensive immigration reform. Too many aspiring Americans have been forced to live in limbo while Republicans in Congress drag their feet and ignore reality; the time to fix our broken immigration system is now.\nThe brief makes the case, from the perspective of 218 Members of Congress, that DAPA and expanded DACA are consistent with Congressional intent and the Executives longstanding legal authority to establish national immigration enforcement priorities and exercise discretion in the enforcement of our immigration laws. As stated in the brief: Congress has granted the Secretary [of Homeland Security] broad discretion in determining how to carry out the immigration laws, and has explicitly directed the Secretary to establish policies and priorities for enforcement of those laws.\nRep. DeGette and her congressional colleagues are deeply concerned that the Fifth Circuit Court decision interferes with Congresss ability to grant the Executive the flexibility and discretion as necessary to enforce the law in a rational, effective, and efficient manner. The ruling would instead force Congress to specifically prescribe every priority and power with detailed enforcement instructions, the practical effect of which  if allowed to stand  would strip the Executive of broad authority to make discretionary judgments on how best to enforce the nations immigration laws where Congress has not prescribed a specific action, and would devastate millions of individuals, families, and communities across the nation.\nFull text of the amicus brief can be found here.\nAdditional Background:\nOn November 20, 2014, the Obama Administration announced plans to expand the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and to create a new Deferred Action for Parental Accountability (DAPA) program to offer temporary protection from removal to the parents of American citizens and lawful permanent residents. On February 16, 2015, a federal district court in Texas blocked the implementation of those programs, and on November 9th, a divided panel of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld this ruling. The Administration is petitioning the Supreme Court to review this decision. The Democratic Members amicus curiae brief is in support of the governments petition.\nSummary of key points: \n Congress has entrusted the Secretary of Homeland Security with broad discretion in the enforcement of the nations immigration laws.\n \n For decades, Congress has recognized the executive branchs authority to exercise discretion in the enforcement of our immigration laws.\n\tWhen the Immigration and Nationality Act was first enacted in 1952, Congress authorized the Executive to adopt regulations, issue instructions, and take other acts necessary to implement the law. \n\tWith the creation of the Department of Homeland Security in 2002, Congress explicitly directed the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish national immigration enforcement policies and priorities. \n \n The Fifth Circuit decision undermines Congresss ability to place critical responsibility in the hands of the agency with the relevant expertise and capabilities.\n \n The ruling would alarmingly curtail Congresss ability to delegate discretionary authority to the Executive, forcing Congress to specifically prescribe every priority and power delegated to the Secretary of Homeland Security with detailed enforcement instructions.\n\tThe Fifth Circuit decision interferes with rational, effective, and efficient enforcement of federal law by removing the Secretarys broad authority to make discretionary judgments on how best to enforce the nations immigration laws where Congress has not prescribed a specific action.\n\tIf allowed to stand, the ruling would drastically impair effective administration of our immigration laws, throwing well-established immigration practices into disarray and harming millions of individuals around the country.\n \n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://degette.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/degette-joins-members-of-house-and-senate-to-file-amicus-brief-in-us"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.7020129598677158, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}