Joe Biden vows to appeal ruling against ‘Dreamers’ immigration programme

Biden said a judge’s decision to curb a programme that protects undocumented migrants brought to the US as children was ‘deeply disappointing’

The ruling also did not immediately affect the status of people already accepted to the immigration programme

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Immigration rights activists hold a rally in front of the US Supreme Court in Washington in 2019. Photo: AFP

Published: 5:37am, 18 Jul 2021Updated: 5:37am, 18 Jul 2021

US President Joe Biden on Saturday denounced as “deeply disappointing” a federal judge’s decision curbing a programme that protects undocumented migrants brought to the country as children.

In a statement from the White House, Biden said the Justice Department would appeal the ruling by Texas-based Judge Andrew Hanen, while adding that “only Congress can ensure a permanent solution by granting a path to citizenship for Dreamers,” the young people brought to the US as children.

DACA supporters received a reprieve in June 2020 when the Supreme Court ruled in a 5-to-4 vote that the Trump administration had not provided sufficient justification for its attempts to end the programme.

It made clear it was ruling largely on procedural issues, and left open the possibility of further challenges.

Hanen’s ruling was limited, however. It is unclear how the nine High Court justices might rule if the case again reaches them.