Immigration Agents Sue Feds over Deferred Action

Washington D.C. - Another constitutional showdown over immigration has begun as a group of ICE agents filed a lawsuit Thursday against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano.

The lawsuit initiated by a group of immigration enforcement agents alleges that the department’s policies regarding deferred action inhibit their ability to defend the Constitution.

The lawyer representing the agents, Kris Kobach, is also the author of Arizona’s S.B 1070 and the leading voice on immigration policy for the GOP party platform.

“They’re being ordered by their federal appointee superiors to break federal law, or if they don’t break federal law, according to their orders they will be disciplined,” Kobach said, according to the Huffington Post, “This is an absolutely breathtaking assertion of authority and an abuse of authority.”

The two policies the plaintiffs take issue with are President Obama’s use of prosecutorial discretion and deferred action for young immigrant arrivals, which gives them reprieve from deportation while they go through the process of legally obtaining work or study visas and green cards.

Because removing close to 1 million young immigrants is an unmanageable task, Obama by executive order said the DHS would utilize prosecutorial discretion and instructed immigration enforcement agents to concentrate on deporting gang members, convicted criminals and repeat immigration offenders.

It should be noted that both previous Republican and Democratic presidents have used executive order, and in some instances more than once, while President Obama only used this privilege once.

Deferred action, though only a temporary solution for young immigrants, is popular with the Hispanic community. Last week, when the DHS began accepting applications, thousands of young people lined up for hours in major metropolitan areas to get advice from immigration attorneys and turn in their visa applications.