Commentary: Today, the U.S. Supreme Court deadlocked 4-4 in United States v. Texas. The case will now return to the district court in Brownsville for further trial proceedings.
Sen. José Rodríguez released the following statement regarding this morning's U.S. Supreme Court ruling on President Obama's Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA) and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) executive order:
I am extremely disappointed that the U.S. Supreme Court split 4-4 on President Obama's 2014 order granting prosecutorial discretion for the undocumented parents of U.S. Citizens and Legal Permanent Residents. Tearing families apart is not an American value, and now these individuals will be unable come out of the shadows and live their lives without fear of being ripped away from their families or exploited by unscrupulous employers.
On the legal question, I strongly believe the federal government has the authority to set immigration policy priorities. This decision will also have significant negative economic consequences, as immigrants provide tremendous benefits to Texas. In this state, undocumented youth paid $51.6 million in university/college tuition and fees in 2013 as well as an estimated $1.6 billion in state and local taxes. In 2011, immigrants of all status in Texas contributed $65 billion in economic output - wages, salary, and business earnings.
With that, it is and has been imperative for Congress to do its job by passing Comprehensive Immigration Reform. If it had, the President would not have had to take the actions he did. There must be a process for these students who grew up in the U.S., known as Dreamers, and the undocumented workers who support the economy to obtain a path to Legal Permanent Residency and eventually attain their dreams of U.S. Citizenship. It's time to let these immigrants, who are Americans in almost every way, serve their country, move up the economic ladder, and achieve their dreams.