The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops today joined 24 other faith-based organizations in a frend-of-the-court brief to a case before the U.S. Supreme Court brought by states questioning President Barack Obama's 2014 executive action barring deportation of undocumented immigrants.
Texas and 25 other states sued the federal government after Obama in November 2014 used what he believes were existing powers of the executive branch to draft programs that would postpone deportation of approximately 4 million to 5 million of the 11 million undocumented immigrants residing in the United States. The states sued the federal government in a federal trial court in Texas, and the 2014 program has been blocked since February 2015. The case never went to a full trial in the Texas federal court because the federal government appealed that court's temporary restraining orders to the Supreme Court, and asked the high court to hear the case. The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in United States v. Texas on April 18.
The amicus brief states that the programs proposed by the executive action provide “important benefits to those most vulnerable in our society and to those who serve them” and also ensure “that the public will continue to benefit from the substantial contributions of recent immigrants.”
Other groups joining the brief were Church World Service; the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.); Leadership Conference of Women Religious; Disciples Home Missions; Sisters of Mercy of the Americas; Sojourners; Franciscan Action Network; Missionary Servants of the Most Holy Trinity; NETWORK, a National Catholic Social Justice Lobby; Mennonite Central Committee U.S.; Conference of Major Superiors of Men; General Synod of the United Church of Christ; National Latino Evangelical Coalition; Hope for Peace and Justice; Good Shepherd United Church of Christ; ISAIAH; Shadow Rock; Christ’s Foundry United Methodist Mission; Esperanza; Southside Presbyterian Church; Oklahoma Conference of Churches; National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference; and Reformed Church of Highland Park.
The amicus brief can be found by clicking here.