By not ruling, Supreme Court delivers blow to Trump-era immigration policy

WASHINGTON (Gray DC) - The Supreme Court decided not to decide a case having to do with immigration law in the United States. The case is Arizona versus San Francisco - it boiled down to a fight over a Trump Administration policy that would have made it more difficult for immigrants to get a green card. Wednesday the Supreme Court announced they should not have taken up the case.

All nine justices agreed an appeal should not have been granted to Arizona and 12 other states after they tried to defend a Trump-era “public charge rule.” The rule said immigrants could not become permanent U.S. citizens if they relied too heavily on government assistance.

Lower courts blocked Trump’s policy in 2020 months after its unveiling. The Trump legal team was ready to take the case to the Supreme Court, but when he left office, the Biden Justice Department stopped defending the rule. That is when the state of Arizona and others tried to step in to continue defending the policy.

The question the court had to answer was whether these states could pick up where the Trump team left off defending the rule. Instead of answering the question, the Supreme Court deferred to the lower court’s decision which said the states could not.

The Supreme Court has two dozen more cases to rule on before the justices go on their summer break. The opinions yet to be released include cases surrounding immigration, guns, and a possible overturning of the landmark abortion rights ruling Roe versus Wade.