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A federal judge in Iowa halted the state's effort to enforce its own immigration laws on Monday.

The Iowa law would have allowed the state to file criminal charges against illegal immigrants who have outstanding deportation orders or who previously had been denied entry to the U.S.

U.S. District Court Judge Stephen Locher's block on enforcement is only temporary as the Iowa legislation is further litigated. Locher said he nevertheless believes the law will fail because federal immigration law supersedes that of states.

"As a matter of politics, the new legislation might be defensible. As a matter of constitutional law, it is not," Locher's ruling read. "Under binding Supreme Court precedent, Senate File 2340 is preempted in its entirety by federal law and thus is invalid under the Supremacy Clause."

FOX EXCLUSIVE: MIGRANTS GREED UNDER ICE PROGRAM EXPLODED TO OVER 7.4 MILLION

A federal judge in Iowa halted the state's effort to enforce its own immigration laws on Monday. (Qian Weizhong/VCG via Getty Images)

Republican Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed the "illegal re-entry" bill into law earlier this year. It followed similar legislation in Texas. Officials in both states have heavily criticized President Biden's handling of border policies.

Reynolds and Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird said the state plans to appeal the ruling.

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"Iowa never would have had to pass this law to begin with if it werent for Bidens open borders," Bird said in a statement after the ruling. "Rather than suing Iowa for enforcing immigration laws, he should do his duty to secure the border."

Republican Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed the "illegal re-entry" bill into law earlier this year. It followed similar legislation in Texas. Officials in both states have heavily criticized President Biden's administration's handling of border policies. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Reynolds, meanwhile, argued that the Biden administration has left states "defenseless" against the "ongoing crisis at our southern border."

FORMER ASSISTANT FBI DIRECTOR WARNS AGAINST 'HUGE VULNERABILITY' ASSOCIATED WITH BORDER SURGE

"Plainly, the Biden administration is failing to do their job and enforce federal immigration laws allowing millions to enter and re-enter without any consequence or delay," she added.

U.S. District Court Judge Stephen Locher's ruled that Iowa's immigration law is blocked thanks to a 2015 Supreme Court ruling. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

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Iowa's law was due to take effect on July 1. The Justice Department has announced plans to go after a similar piece of legislation in Oklahoma in the coming weeks.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Anders Hagstrom is a reporter with Fox News Digital covering national politics and major breaking news events. Send tips to Anders.Hagstrom@Fox.com, or on Twitter: @Hagstrom_Anders.

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Judge halts Iowa attempt to take action against illegal immigrants - Fox News

Rodrigo Salazar is a man who entered the U.S. without a visa and has been living in the country without legal status ever since. Because of this, Rodrigo, who asked that we not use his or his wifes real names in order to protect their identity, cannot advance from low-paying jobs at restaurants and car washes.

His wife, Carmela, is a U.S. citizen, but she is also facing career limitations. Carmela doesnt feel safe moving to a place where she could get a higher-paying job. She worries that Rodrigos lack of legal status would be more obvious in a city with a smaller Latino population, which would put him at risk for arrest and deportation.

The entire Salazar family, including their two children, live with the constant fear of family separation if Rodrigo is deported.

Immigrants like Rodrigo, who are living in the U.S. without legal status but are married to U.S. citizens, will now have protection from deportation, President Joe Biden announced on June 18, 2024. In order to qualify, they must have arrived 10 or more years ago and be married to a U.S. citizen. Those who meet these criteria will be able to get work permits and can get on the pathway to citizenship while working and living in the U.S. legally.

The Biden administration estimates that about 500,000 immigrant spouses of citizens will be protected from deportation with this policy change. The policy will also apply to approximately 50,000 U.S. citizens stepchildren who are living in the U.S. without legal immigration status.

We are migration scholars who study mixed-citizenship marriages meaning some family members are citizens or have the legal right to stay in the U.S., while others do not and the consequences of being undocumented. Our research shows that when one family member lacks legal immigration status in the U.S., the family as a whole assumes an undocumented status.

When one family member cannot safely travel, work or access health care, all family members suffer. The opposite is also true. When a family member is able to shift from living without legal status in the U.S. to getting legal status, the lives of the entire family improve.

Generally, having an immediate family member who is a U.S. citizen gives a foreign citizen the chance to live legally in the U.S. with permanent residency and a pathway to citizenship.

For most of the 20th century, all spouses of U.S. citizens who met the legal standards for qualified marital relationships were able to become citizens through a relatively straightforward process, but that changed in 1996.

A 1996 law called the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act imposed harsh penalties for people living in the U.S. without legal immigration status. One of the penalties is a 10-year bar to re-entry for anyone who has lived without a visa in the U.S. for one year or more. This ban goes into effect as soon as that individual leaves U.S. territory.

A consequence of this 1996 law was that getting a green card, which is an identity document that gives someone legal permanent residency in the country, became dependent on whether an immigrant entered and remained in the U.S. with or without a visa.

This change in the law produced a stark inequality in U.S. citizens ability to legally sponsor their immigrant spouses for permanent residency.

If an immigrant spouse of a U.S. citizen has overstayed a visa, this person can apply for legal immigration status through their spouse from within the U.S. In these cases, the spouse does not have to leave U.S. territory and is not subject to the 10-year ban.

In contrast, if a U.S. citizens spouse entered the U.S. without a visa or other legal permission, they must leave the country for the final step in their legal immigration application process. But when they leave the country, their 10-year ban automatically goes into effect.

This means that although every U.S. citizens spouse, including those lacking legal immigration status, technically qualifies for legal permanent residency, some of them will have to spend a decade or more outside the country before they can actually get a green card.

As a result, over the past few decades, millions of immigrants who were living in the U.S. without legal permission but were married to U.S. citizens have not gotten legal immigration status.

While the 10-year bar applies only to immigrants without legal status, in practice it also profoundly affects their citizen spouses, too.

In these cases, citizens married to immigrants without legal permission to be in the U.S. have two difficult options. They can resign themselves to a life of fear and limitations in the U.S., including the ever-present threat of their spouses deportation, or they can give up living in the U.S. altogether for a decade or more.

The Biden administration has connected this new executive action on families to its recent announcement that it will heighten restrictions for seeking asylum, which scholars have called a ban on asylum.

The administration said in a press release that it both wants to secure the border and expand lawful pathways to keep families together.

Under this new policy, immigrant spouses who entered the country without a visa before June 17, 2014, will be allowed to parole in place, which is similar to a policy that benefits military veterans immigrant spouses who lack legal immigration status in the U.S. Parole in place means that these immigrants will have authorization to work and increased protection from deportation.

Parole in place will also allow immigrant spouses of U.S. citizens to have their immigration applications processed within the U.S., whether they arrived with or without a visa. This means they will no longer need to leave the country for 10 years or more if they entered the U.S. without a visa.

Having the legal right to work in the U.S. will allow these immigrant spouses to find jobs that better match their education and skills. Some estimates suggest that this could increase an immigrants wages anywhere from 14% to 40% more than what they currently earn.

The executive action will also yield economic benefits for the communities where mixed-citizenship families live.

Economic analyses measuring the impact of expanding work authorization and access to citizenship predict that this will create new jobs, boost incomes across communities, increase local and federal tax revenues and encourage ongoing economic growth.

As scholars of migration, we believe that this executive action is an important step toward guaranteeing that U.S. citizens who marry immigrants do not end up experiencing negative consequences because their spouses cannot legally live, work or vote in the U.S. It will also prevent the de facto deportation of U.S. citizens alongside their noncitizen spouses.

In essence, this policy change benefits American families and protects the rights of U.S. citizens to marry the person they love, keep their families together and even live in their own country. Beyond helping families, this change will have far-reaching economic benefits for the communities and country where they live.

The rest is here:
How Biden's executive order to protect immigrant spouses of citizens from deportation will benefit their families and ... - The Conversation

Nearly a year since Texas adopted a law empowering state and local police officers to arrest undocumented migrants who cross into its territory, Republican lawmakers in at least 11 states have tried to adopt similar measures, capitalizing on the prominence of immigration in the 2024 presidential election.

The fate of the proposals six have been enacted or are under consideration, with Louisiana expected to sign its measure into law as early as next week is still being litigated. In a case before a federal appeals court, Texas is defending its law by arguing that illegal immigration is a form of invasion, allowing it to expand its power to protect its borders. Federal courts have previously ruled that, from a constitutional perspective, the definition of the term invasion is limited to military attacks.

States have tested the limits of their power over immigration before, but lawyers and legal scholars said the push this year was accompanied by what had amounted to a public-relations campaign.

In campaign speeches, political ads and the halls of Congress, more Republicans are echoing former President Donald J. Trump by arguing that the rise of migration at the southern border is an invasion. President Biden, under pressure from both Republicans and Democrats to tackle the issues at the border, signed an executive order this month to curb asylum, and he could have more actions coming next week.

The measure expected to be signed by Gov. Jeff Landry, Republican of Louisiana, includes provisions allowing Mr. Landry and his attorney general to establish a compact with Texas to address border security. Mr. Landry has already met with Gov. Greg Abbott, Republican of Texas, and dispatched Army National Guard soldiers from Louisiana to Texas border with Mexico.

Valarie Hodges, the state senator in Louisiana who wrote the legislation, joined other Republicans in calling Mr. Bidens recent action too little, too late, saying in an interview that state measures like hers were essential because the Biden administration had failed to enforce immigration laws.

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G.O.P.-Led States, Claiming 'Invasion,' Push to Expand Power to Curb Immigration - The New York Times

EXCLUSIVE An illegal immigrant from Honduras who was released into the United States after coming across the southern border during the Biden administration has pleaded guilty in Iowa for the sexual assault of a 12-year-old girl.

Junior Manuel Dubon Benitez, 18, was arrested on Feb. 14 on suspicion of sexual abuse upon Jane Doe a 12 year old child at a residence in Waterloo, Iowa, days earlier, according to court documents obtained first by the Washington Examiner.

An Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesperson told the Washington Examiner that Dubon Benitez was a citizen of Honduras who illegally entered the U.S. near Hidalgo, Texas, in April 2022 as a 16-year-old.

The case is the latest example of what former President Donald Trump has termed Biden migrant crime, used to describe crimes committed by immigrants who were released into the country after entering illegally amid the Biden-era border crisis.

Nearly 10 million non-U.S. citizens have been encountered by federal law enforcement attempting to enter the country in the more than 40 months since President Joe Biden took office more than any other period in history.

Dubon Benitez was charged with second-degree sexual abuse but accepted a plea deal for third-degree sexual abuse, according to the court documents reviewed by the Washington Examiner.

He pleaded guilty in Iowa District Court for Black Hawk County on May 14. The final judgment was entered into the record on June 7.

Judge MelissaAnderson-Seeber will sentence Dubon Benitez in the coming weeks. He faces up to 10 years in state prison.

Dubon Benitez is being held by the Iowa Department of Corrections until sentencing. ICE has lodged a detainer with the state, a request that Dubon Benitez not be released after serving his sentence but immediately turned over to the federal agency to begin deportation proceedings.

ICE did not disclose if Dubon Benitez arrived with a parent or as an unaccompanied minor who was placed with an adult in the U.S. by the Department of Health and Human Services.

His connection to the victim, whose identity is protected due to the victims age, was not described in the court records. The county attorney declined to provide additional information beyond what was obtained in the court documents.

Im saddened and disgusted to hear that a young Iowan has suffered the awful tragedy of sexual assault, Chuck Grassley (R), the senior senator from Iowa, told the Washington Examiner in a statement. The Biden administration ought to wake up to the crisis theyve created and begin enforcing our nations immigration laws.

Meanwhile, Ill continue to lead congressional oversight of the federal programs used to shuffle illegal immigrants, including unaccompanied minors, into our country, he added. By failing to enforce appropriate safeguards and vetting measures, the Biden administration is enabling bad actors to run rampant.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

Elsewhere, New York police arrested a 25-year-old man from Ecuador on Tuesday in connection with the rape of a 13-year-old girl in the middle of the day at a park in Queens.

The suspect, Christian Geovanny Inga-Landi, is believed to have approached a boy and girl at the park and attacked the girl while wielding a machete.

Originally posted here:
Illegal immigrant pleads guilty to sexually assaulting 12-year-old girl - Washington Examiner

President Joe Biden on Tuesday announced a new program aimed at helping some migrant families stay together by allowing noncitizen spouses and children to apply for lawful permanent residency without leaving the country and Donald Trump and other top Republicans already are crying foul.

The administration also said some recipients of deferred action under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program and other so-called Dreamers would be able to more swiftly get work visas if they have earned a college degree at an accredited U.S. institution and received an offer of employment from a U.S. employer in a field related to their degree.

Todays a good day, a smiling Biden said to applause during an afternoon event in the East Room of the White House to announce his moves. Those who will be eligible for the spouse and children program would have been living in the United States for at least 10 years. These couples have been raising families, sending their kids to church and school, and paying taxes. They have contributed to our country for over 10 years or more.

Still, he described those individuals as living under a cloud of fear and uncertainty, adding: We can fix that. And thats what Im going to do today.

The White House estimates the new program could impact 500,000 noncitizen spouses, who on average have been inside the United States for 23 years. It also could affect up to 50,000 noncitizen children. During a briefing Tuesday, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre sidestepped a question about whether federal entities could handle a spike in applications. We believe this can move forward, she said.

About the program for work visa-seeking college graduates, Biden said: Those who have been educated in U.S. colleges and universities should put their skills and knowledge to work here in America. We want to keep building the strongest economy in the world, with the best workforce in the world.

The new process is expected to be implemented later this summer, Biden said.

A fact sheet released by the administration said the moves would facilitate the employment visa process for those who have graduated from college and have a high-skilled job offer, including DACA recipients and other Dreamers.

The action comes after Biden was criticized by some Democrats for issuing an order on June 4 that would limit migrants asylum claims at the U.S.-Mexico border and allow immigration officials to swiftly deport individuals who illegally enter the United States. Republicans called the move too little, too late, or said it was motivated solely by election year politics.

Jean-Pierre said Tuesday the new action should not be assessed as a counterweight to the June 4 action. Were trying to deal with a broad stroke of issues here, she said, not ruling out additional executive moves.

Advocates for immigrant families were already praising the White Houses plans ahead of an event at the White House on Tuesday.

Immigrant spouses & children of U.S. citizens & Dreamers contribute to our economy & communities & enrich our culture. America is home. They deserve to be here and live their American Dream, Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair Nanette Barragn, D-Calif., wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Through his actions, President Biden is helping half a million non-citizen spouses and step-children of Americans to remain with their families, including many from Asia and the Pacific Islands who have lived here for years. Easing visa processes for Dreamers will cut red tape and allow young people to secure a job of their choice and contribute to our communities and economy, Rep. Judy Chu, D-Calif., the chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, said in a statement.

Rep. Sylvia R. Garcia, D-Texas, said in a statement that with the move, the administration reaffirms its commitment to the immigrant community.

An estimated 55,000 immigrants in the Houston area are married to U.S. citizens and many of them will now be able to live, work and raise a family without the fear of deportation, she said. Additionally, providing work opportunities to some of the 270,000 Texans who are undocumented Dreamers and considered high-skilled workers will be a huge step forward.

Lanae Erickson, vice president for social policy, education and politics at the center-left Third Way think tank said in a statement that the folks who will be eligible to apply for this relief have been in this country for decades, working hard, contributing to their communities, and caring for their families. It makes no sense to upend their lives and send them back to a country they barely know.

Republican critics, however, blasted the move even before the White House formally announced it.

Biden is preparing to give MASS AMNESTY to hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens! This is unsustainable and cant be allowed to continue! On day one, we will SHUT DOWN THE BORDER and start deporting millions of Bidens Illegal Criminals, Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, wrote Monday on his social media site. We will once again put AMERICANS First and MAKE AMERICA SAFE AGAIN!

A top Trump surrogate added more.

Bidens mass amnesty plan will undoubtedly lead to a greater surge in migrant crime, cost taxpayers millions of dollars they cannot afford, overwhelm public services, and steal Social Security and Medicare benefits from American seniors to fund benefits for illegals draining the programs Americans paid into their entire working lives, Trump campaign national press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a Tuesday statement.

Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, a Judiciary Committee member and candidate for Senate Republican leader in the next Congress, accused Biden of playing election year politics.

This is what the Border Patrol calls a pull factor. Its like a magnet, attracting people into the United States who know that if they wait long enough, President Biden will find some way to allow them to stay in the United States, even though they circumvent legal means of coming into the country, Cornyn said in a statement.

Now, I dont think anybody is fooled by President Bidens sudden interest in whats happening at the southern border, Cornyn added. This is a last-ditch attempt to turn down the heat on the border crisis in the lead up to the election, and the American people arent buying it.

Biden accused Trump of trying to play on migrants fears, adding his expected general election foe is solely interested in playing politics while Biden is focused on fixing the immigration system.

Among the Democratic lawmakers and officials standing on the stage behind Biden were Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer of New York, Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, as well as Sens. Mark Kelly of Arizona and Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada.

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Democrats hail Biden immigration moves that Trump brands 'amnesty' - Roll Call