Title 42 ends: Texas AG Paxton files for restraining order against Biden border policy

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed for a temporary restraining order to prevent a border policy that allows for the release of immigrants on parole in cases of overcrowding following the end of Title 42. Texas and other border states are preparing for an influx of immigrants seeking asylum in the United States.

Paxton, a Republican, asked that the courts stop a policy that the Department of Homeland Security detailed in a memo on Wednesday. It allows for immigrants to be released on humanitarian parole if U.S. Customs and Border Protection faces overcrowding.

DEFLORIDA BLUEPRINT: DESANTIS FINDS HIS FOREIGN POLICY AS HE INCHES TOWARD 2024 RUN

The Texas attorney general said the policy will allow “thousands” of illegal immigrants into communities “without even requiring a court date” — however, DHS said in the memo that immigrants would need to make an appointment with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to schedule a hearing. CBP also said the measure was crucial to protecting both agents and immigrants amid overcrowding.

Still, Paxton called the policy “insanity.”

“There are no words that can fully describe the unmitigated catastrophe that Joe Biden has created on our southern border,” Paxton said in a statement. “What we are watching in real time is the systematic, deliberate, and intentional destruction of American border security. There’s simply no other explanation for what Biden is doing.”

The policy went into effect on Friday, requiring immigrants to provide a mailing address and promise to appear at an ICE facility within 60 days to ask for an immigration court date if released due to overcrowding.

“The Biden Administration could arbitrarily allow the illegal alien longer than that, and the aliens are not required to appear in person—they can ask for their court date by mail,” a press release announcing Paxton’s court action stated.

The policy authorizes parole for immigrants if a sector capacity goes above 125%, if agents apprehend 7,000 people a day over 72 hours, or if the average time in custody goes above 60 hours, per the policy memo. Agents have had multiple days when encounters have soared to over 10,000, according to CBP data.

Other states have also attempted to block the memo. Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, also a Republican, filed a separate lawsuit on Thursday claiming that the policy was identical to a similar one blocked in March.

Judge T. Kent Wetherell agreed with Florida’s assessment and issued a two-week restraining order, while the Texas case argues for an injunction on a different charge.

CBP released a statement following Wetherell’s ruling. It said it would comply with the court order “and is assessing next steps.” However, CBP expressed frustration with the judge’s decision.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

“This is a harmful ruling that will result in unsafe overcrowding at CBP facilities and undercut our ability to efficiently process and remove migrants, and risks creating dangerous conditions for border patrol agents and migrants,” CBP said.

“The fact remains that when overcrowding has occurred in Border Patrol facilities, Republican and Democratic Administrations alike have used this parole authority to protect the safety and security of migrants and the workforce,” CBP continued. “Individuals apprehended by CBP are thoroughly vetted against all national security and public safety systems, regardless of how they are processed.”