() — In its first major immigration case of the term, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments Tuesday in a dispute over the authority of the Biden administration to set immigration policy.
The White House wants to focus enforcement on immigrants who pose a threat to national security or public safety, but two conservatives states, Texas and Louisiana, sued over the strategy. In a 5-4 decision in July, the Supreme Court kept in place a lower court order that vacated the policy, but the justices agreed to take up the administration’s appeal.
At the heart of the case is a September 2021 memorandum issued by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who instructed immigration officials to focus enforcement on people it believes pose a threat to national security or public safety or who are recent border crossers.
Texas, Louisiana, and other critics argued the policy allowed too many noncitizens to avoid consequences for entering illegally, overstaying visas or otherwise violating immigration laws. The administration has argued states don’t have standing to sue and that the federal government has broad discretion over immigration policy and enforcement.
Kinney County Sheriff Brad Coe has been experiencing human and drug smuggling pursuits consistently for a year and a half in his county. He says the rule of law needs to be enforced and followed
“I hope the outcome is the Supreme Court rules in our favor, that yes, immigration laws need to be enforced and they need to be enforced by the book and that the Secretary of Homeland Security does not have the authority to circumvent the law,” Coe told .
Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry says he is hopeful the Supreme Court will uphold the rule of law, saying, “This case is about public safety; the law is clear, and the president should follow it.”
Oral arguments are scheduled to begin at 10 ET. The case is United States v. Texas.
