Federal Judge Blocks Biden Administration’s 100-Day Pause on Removals

On February 23, 2021, a U.S. district judge in Texas blocked the Biden administration’s 100-day “pause” on certain removals announced in a memorandum on President Biden’s first day in office. The order applies nationwide but only to the 100-day pause, not to the entire memorandum.

“This preliminary injunction is granted on a nationwide basis and prohibits enforcement and implementation of the [100-day pause] in every place Defendants have jurisdiction to enforce and implement the January 20 Memorandum,” Judge Drew Tipton wrote. He said the Department of Homeland Security’s “core failure” was “its omission of a rational explanation grounded in the facts reviewed and the factors considered.” This “fatal” failure, Judge Tipton said, made the 100-day pause “arbitrary and capricious.”

Related Links:

• Texas v. United States
• “Federal Judge Deals Biden Another Blow on 100-Day Deportation Ban,” Politico, Feb. 24, 2021
• “Review of and Interim Revision to Civil Immigration Enforcement and Removal Policies and Priorities,” Dept. of Homeland Security, Jan. 20, 2021