Rob McKenna explains judge’s ruling keeping DACA afloat

A federal judge in California has ruled that President Trump can’t simply withdraw the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program known as DACA. The judge’s ruling, which may or may not stick, temporarily blocks the program’s dismantling.

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“We’ve seen federal trial court judges rule against some of Trump’s immigration-related decisions only to be overturned themselves by higher courts including the U.S. Supreme Court,” former Washington state attorney general Rob McKenna told KIRO Radio’s Dave Ross.

The basis for U.S. District Judge William Alsup’s decision is similar to the basis of others that have been issued against actions taken by the Trump administration, McKenna said.

“It basically comes down to his ruling that the administration was arbitrary and capricious and abused its discretion in ending the DACA program,” McKenna said.

The ruling states that once DACA was implemented, it became subject to what is called the Federal Administrative Procedures Act. That act regulates administrative actions by executive agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security.

“DHS started deferred actions years ago. It actually dates back to one of the Bush administrations. Once they started exercising their discretion to defer action on some people who were here illegally, it became what’s called ‘a regular practice.’ Then it became subject to the Administrative Procedures Act,” McKenna said. “That in term means that changes to the practice can’t be arbitrary. They can’t be capricious. They can’t amount to an abuse of discretion. It also means, at least according to the plaintiffs, that as a substantive rule, changes have to be subject to public notice.”

Judge Alsup’s ruling also took into account Trump’s alleged motivation for ending DACA.

“The judge concluded that the president ordered DHS to terminate the DACA program to create more leverage in the administration’s negotiations with Congress over DACA. As opposed to a reason based on what’s called legal necessity to change the program,” McKenna said.

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