Supreme Court DACA Ruling Protects 120,000 Texans and Deals Trump Second Major Defeat This Week

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The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday blocked the Trump administration’s push to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, rescuing more than 120,000 Texans from possible deportation.

In a 5-4 ruling, the justices said the White House hadn’t provided adequate justification for its effort to end the Obama-era initiative, which gives protections to immigrants brought to the U.S. as children.

The decision is the second high court defeat for the Trump this week. On Monday, justices ruled that existing federal law protects LGBTQ+ people from workplace discrimination.

Thursday’s decision comes three years after Trump announced he was terminating DACA, which allows 700,000 people — frequently referred to as “Dreamers” — to legally work and avoid being sent back to countries where, in many cases, they have no support structures.

“The Supreme Court ruled with the American people and immigrant families against the cruelty and unlawfulness of the Trump administration,” said U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-San Antonio, who chairs the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.

“Today is a victory for Dreamers, but also highlights the need for Congress to provide permanent protection from deportation. We’ve seen how the cruelty of President Trump has no limit and we expect the administration to continue its efforts to try and terminate the DACA program — we are committed to fighting for Dreamers and immigrant families.

Diana Gómez, advocacy manager at Progress Texas, joined Castro in asking Congress to further shield Dreamers by passing legislation that permanently protects them from deportation.

“Trump’s attempts to take deportation protections away from young immigrants are cruel and wrong,” she said. “Texas immigrants and DACA recipients are our teachers and our health care workers fighting on the front lines. They’re our family members, friends and neighbors.”

San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg trumpeted the decision on Twitter with an all-caps “VICTORY.” He added: “DACA is here to stay, and so are the hundreds of thousands of Dreamers who strengthen our communities.”

VICTORY. DACA is here to stay, and so are the hundreds of thousands of Dreamers who strengthen our communities. #HomeIsHere https://t.co/52GNW7TyN4

— Mayor Ron | Wear a mask! 😷 (@Ron_Nirenberg) June 18, 2020

Displaying his flair for divisive hyperbole, Trump tweeted that the two recent Supreme Court decisions are “shotgun blasts into the face of people that are proud to call themselves Republicans or Conservatives” and claimed the country stands to “lose our 2nd. Amendment & everything else.”

These horrible & politically charged decisions coming out of the Supreme Court are shotgun blasts into the face of people that are proud to call themselves Republicans or Conservatives. We need more Justices or we will lose our 2nd. Amendment & everything else. Vote Trump 2020!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 18, 2020