A federal appellate has just given President Joe Biden a win by allowing him and his administration to continue to use their new asylum restrictions at the U.S.-Mexico border.
The ruling, according to CBS News, comes from the California-based Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
The decision of the three-judge panel was 2 to 1.
Judges William Fletcher and Richard Paez - both appointees of former President Bill Clinton - voted in Biden's favor, while Judge Lawrence VanDyke - an appointee of former President Donald Trump - voted against Biden.
At issue, here, are the asylum rules that Biden put into effect back in May.
NPR reports:
The new rules, which took effect in May, make it harder for migrants to get asylum if they cross the U.S.-Mexico border illegally after passing through Mexico or another country without seeking protection there first.
After the rules were put into effect, they were challenged by migrant groups.
The groups received a victory in July, when a federal judge, according to the New York Times, ruled that Biden's "new policy [is] 'contrary to law' because it violate[s] existing federal statutes and international treaties that require the United States to allow anyone crossing the border to request asylum."
Now, the Ninth Circuit has essentially extended the pause placed on Tigar's order, thereby allowing the Biden administration to continue enforcing its new asylum regulations.
It ought to be noted that the Ninth Circuit's opinion is not on the merits, that is, it does not consider whether or not Biden's new asylum regulations are legal. What the Ninth Circuit's ruling means is that Biden will be able to continue enforcing the new asylum rules while litigation over the rules' legality continues.
On the merits, as stated, the asylum rules have been struck down and the Biden administration is now seeking an appeal.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has released a statement in response to the Ninth Circuit's ruling on Thursday.
"To be clear, we will continue to apply the rule and immigration consequences for those who do not have a lawful basis to remain in the United States," the DHS said, claiming, "The rule has significantly reduced irregular migration, and since its implementation on May 12th we have removed more than 85,000 individuals."
