|
The program,
which was announced by President Barack Obama in 2014, never
took effect because it was blocked in federal court.
Obama had hoped that overhauling the U.S. immigration system and
resolving the fate of the estimated 11 million people in the
country illegally would be part of his presidential legacy.
However, President Donald Trump has vowed to crack down on
illegal immigration.
The plan unveiled by Obama intended to let roughly 4 million
people - those who have lived illegally in the United States at
least since 2010, have no criminal record and have children who
are U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents - get into a
program that shields them from deportation and supplies work
permits.
However, it was quickly challenged in court by
Republican-governed Texas and 25 other states that argued Obama
had overstepped the powers granted to him by the U.S.
Constitution by infringing upon the authority of Congress.
A federal appeals court blocked the program, and the U.S.
Supreme Court let that ruling stand in a 4-4 split decision last
year.
Kelly said in a statement on Thursday he was rescinding the
initiative, known as DAPA, because "there is no credible path
forward to litigate the currently enjoined policy."
An earlier program, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals
(DACA), offers some 750,000 immigrants brought to the country
illegally as children the chance to attend school and to work.
Trump has previously said his administration was devising a
policy on how to deal with individuals covered by DACA, but no
formal changes have been announced.
"They shouldn't be very worried," Trump said of DACA recipients
in a January ABC News interview. "I do have a big heart."
(Reporting by Eric Beech and Dan Levine; Editing by Toni
Reinhold and Paul Tait)
[© 2017 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2017 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
|
