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President Barack Obama said Tuesday the law and history are on his side and he expects to prevail in the legal fight over his use of executive action to give millions of immigrants relief from deportation.

Obama, speaking at the swearing in of new Defense Secretary Ashton Carter, said he disagrees with the ruling handed down late Monday saying the president failed to follow an administrative procedure law when he took the actions.

His comments led a parade of administration officials who were downplaying the ruling and forecasting ultimate victory.

Related: Hopes On Hold: Dreamers Vent Action Over Immigration Ruling

Attorney General Eric Holder said in a speech at the National Press Club that the late Monday decisions by U.S. District Judge Edward Hanen must be considered as only one judge's decision. He said the issue would ultimately would be decided by a higher court and this decision is an "interim" step in the process.

Hanen's decision forced the Department of Homeland Security to cancel plans to begin on Wednesday accepting applications for the expanded Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA. The program would shield young immigrants who qualify from deportation and grant them permission to work, both for three years. DHS also said the decision could delay the planned mid-May start of a program providing the same benefits to parents of children who are U.S. citizens or legal residents.

White House adviser Cecilia Muoz said the administration is very confident that the executive actions taken by the president after Congress failed to pass immigration reform are well within the president's authority.

"At the end of the day, we expect to prevail legally and we expect this will be a successful process," Muoz said.

"We are going to appeal. We believe we are on very strong legal footing," Muoz said.

Related: Judge Blocks Obama Policy To Defer Deportation Of Millions

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Obama: Law On My Side On Immigration Ruling

Latin American governments expressed disappointment this week over a Texas judges decision to temporarily halt the rollout of President Obamas executive action to shield millions of undocumented immigrants from deportation. Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala issued statements Tuesday regarding Judge Andrew Hanens injunction on the expansion of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which was scheduled to begin accepting applications Wednesday, as well as the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA) program, planned for May.

Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson confirmed Tuesday that both programs would be suspended while the White House appealed the decision. The existing 2012 DACA program remains in place.

Mexicos foreign ministry released a statement noting that it lamented the judges decision, and warned Mexicans in the U.S. not to fall for scams that could proliferate in the wake of confusion caused by the ruling. Mexicans, who make up the majority of the U.S. immigrant population, have been the largest group of beneficiaries of President Obamas executive action on immigration thus far. Immigrants from Mexico make up about 65 percent of those enrolled in the 2012 DACA program, which grants work authorizations and deportation relief for young immigrants who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children.

Guatemala issued a similar statement of regret. The Guatemalan government profoundly laments the decision suspending the enforcement of immigration measures approved by the U.S. presidency that benefits the Guatemalan community, the foreign relations ministry said Tuesday.

Marvin Ponce, an adviser to Honduras president, criticized the political undercurrents of the decision, calling it evidence that there are political sectors fighting to torpedo decisions that alleviate social and economic pressures that overwhelm our countries, local media reported.

El Salvadors government also said it would back a prompt search for measures that promote migratory stability for all migrants that adhere to U.S. standards and whose work contributes to the economy of the country.

Migrants from Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras made up the bulk of unauthorized border crossers last summer in what the Obama administration deemed a humanitarian crisis. More than 67,000 unaccompanied children and 66,900 family units entered the country through the U.S.-Mexico border in fiscal year 2014. Congressional Republicans attributed the surge to the 2012 DACA program, saying rumors of leniency fueled unauthorized migration, but Democrats and immigration advocates said pervasive gang violence in Central America was largely responsible for the influx.

Earlier this year, the Obama administration carved out $1 billion of its 2015 budget to enhance security in those three Central American countries to stem the flow of unauthorized migration. It also launched an in-country refugee processing program in those countries to reunite children who qualify for refugee status with parents living in the U.S.

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Immigration Reform: Mexico, Central American Governments Lament Delay On Executive Action

Speaker of the House John Boehner, R-Ohio, announced he is set to let the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) funding expire and said it would not be the fault of the Republican Party.

The DHS funding is set to expire on Feb. 27, and Congress has yet to pass new funding for the department. The House of Representatives introduced and passed H.R. 240, which would fund the DHS for the 2015 fiscal year, but amendments were attached to defund President Barack Obama's immigration executive orders. While H.R. 240 passed the House, the legislation has stalled in the Senate on at least three occasions because of Democrats' filibuster.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., recognized the filibuster by Senate Democrats and has called for the House to introduce new legislation.

"The Constitution makes it pretty clear that the House has to do its work and the Senate has to do theirs. The House has acted to fund the department and to stop the president's overreach when it comes to immigration and his executive orders," Boehner said during an interview on Fox News Sunday, noting Obama's 22 instances when the president acknowledged he did not have the authority to do issue immigration executive action.

"Congress just can't sit by and let the president defy the Constitution and defy his own oath of office. So the House acted. Now it's time for the Senate to act," Boehner said.

Boehner recognized Senate Democrats are blocking the House-approved DHS funding bill and won't even debate it. While McConnell offered senators to introduce amendments, the debate on the DHS funding has not moved forward.

"It's their (the Senate's) turn. That's the way the system works. That's the way the Constitution spells it out, and so the House has done it's job. We've spoken. If the Senate doesn't like it, they'll have to produce something that fits their institution," Boehner said.

On whether Boehner will let the DHS funding expire, he reiterated the House "has acted, we've done our job." He added, "Senate Democrats are the ones putting us in this precarious position and it's up to Senate Democrats to get their act together."

Boehner blamed Senate Democrats for jeopardizing the DHS' funding and does not understand why they will not offer new ideas to the House-approved bill. Boehner reaffirmed the House did its responsibility to fund the DHS and will let the department's funding expire. If DHS funding expires, Boehner said it will be the Democrats' fault.

Meanwhile, Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard, D-Calif., and Rep. Nita Lowey, D-N.Y., introduced a "clean bill" to fund the DHS without amendments erasing Obama's immigration executive actions.

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Immigration Reform News Today: Speaker John Boehner Ready ...

By Juan A. Lozano Associated Press

HOUSTON -- A federal judge temporarily blocked President Barack Obama's executive action on immigration Monday, giving a coalition of 26 states time to pursue a lawsuit that aims to permanently stop the orders.

U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen's decision puts on hold Obama's orders that could spare as many as five million people who are in the U.S. illegally from deportation.

The federal government is expected to appeal the ruling to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans. The Justice Department had no immediate comment late Monday night.

Hanen's decision will not have any immediate effect because the first of Obama's orders -- to expand a program that protects young immigrants from deportation if they were brought to the U.S. illegally as children -- is not set to start taking effect until Feb. 18. The other major part of Obama's order, which extends deportation protections to parents of U.S. citizens and permanent residents who have been in the country for some years, is not expected to begin until May 19.

In a 2013 ruling in a separate case, Hanen suggested the Homeland Security Department should be arresting parents living in the U.S. illegally who induce their children to cross the border illegally.

The coalition, led by Texas and made up of mostly conservative states in the South and Midwest, argues that Obama has violated the "Take Care Clause" of the U.S. Constitution, which they say limits the scope of presidential power. They also say the order will force increased investment in law enforcement, health care and education.

In their request for the injunction, the coalition said it was necessary because it would be "difficult or impossible to undo the President's lawlessness after the Defendants start granting applications for deferred action."

Congressional Republicans have vowed to block Obama's actions on immigration by cutting off Homeland Security Department spending for the program. Earlier this year, the Republican-controlled House passed a $39.7 billion spending bill to fund the department through the end of the budget year, but attached language to undo Obama's executive actions. The fate of that House-passed bill is unclear as Republicans in the Senate are six votes shy of the 60-vote majority needed to advance most legislation.

The White House has said Obama's executive order is not out of legal bounds and that the U.S. Supreme Court and Congress have said federal officials can set priorities in enforcing immigration laws. Past U.S. Supreme Court decisions have granted immigration officials "broad discretion" on deportation matters.

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Immigration reform: Judge blocks Obama's executive order

By Lou Cannon, State Net Capitol Journal | Published on 02.16.2015 12:00 p.m.

With national immigration reform stymied by partisan division, several states have extended privileges associated with U.S. citizenship to millions of unauthorized immigrants. At the same time, states are leading the legal charge against President Barack Obamas executive orders protecting up to 5 million immigrants from deportation.

California is in the forefront of states accommodating unauthorized immigrants. Hundreds of thousands of them flocked to 150 Department of Motor Vehicleoffices and four special processing centers last month as the Golden State rolled out a law allowing anyone 18 and over to obtain a drivers license after passing road-knowledge and driving tests.

Two of three individualswho took the written test in a language other than English failed to pass on the first try. Even so, the DMV licensed 40,000 new drivers in January and is on track to reach a three-year goal of 1.4 million new licenses.

The new law has been largely welcomed by law-enforcement officers as a safety issue. Julie Powell, a spokeswoman for the California Highway Patrol, said that requiring unauthorized immigrants already on the road to pass a driving test and obtain insurance will bolster public safety.

Californias liberalized policy on drivers licenses is the latest in a series of laws that have eased the lives of unauthorized immigrants, called undocumented by their advocates and illegal by their detractors. California is home to nearly a fourth of all such immigrants in the United States 2.8 million out of 11.6 million, according to Pew Research figures.

In 2014, California enacted 26 laws on immigration, many removing long-existing barriers. Unauthorized immigrants in California can now receive subsidized health care, student loans and financial aid, and licenses to practice law and medicine. Child welfare courts no longer make immigration status a determinant of guardianship.

These laws reflect the liberal political leanings of a state where Democrats hold every statewide office and control the Legislature.More fundamentally, they reflect a sea change in public perceptions of Latin American and Asian immigrants, not long ago regarded as a drain on the state.

In 1994, California voters approved a ballot initiative intended to deny educational and medical benefits to unauthorized immigrants. Courts found most of this initiative unconstitutional but vestiges remained on the books until 2014, when they were repealed at the behest of Latino legislators.

A recent survey by the Public Policy Institute of California found that Californians are more likely to say that immigrants are a benefit to California because of their hard work and job skills (63 percent) than to say that immigrants are a burden to the state because they use public services (32 percent).

Originally posted here:
Lou Cannon: In Paradox, States Play Conflicted Role in National Immigration Debate