TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida is now one of 20 states suing federal immigration agencies and officials over the Department of Homeland Security’s newly-proposed parole processes for Cuban, Haitian and Nicaraguan migrants.
Attorney General Ashley Moody described the program as President Joe Biden’s attempt “to stop illegal immigration by attempting to legalize unlawful entry for hundreds of thousands of immigrants,” announcing Tuesday she signed onto the complaint as trial already started in Pensacola for another lawsuit pitting Florida against Biden on immigration policy.
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“As we prepared to take Biden to court over his unlawful catch-and-release policies, the president announced yet another reckless attempt to continue flooding the country with massive waves of illegal immigrants. Biden’s new solution to his self-created crisis at the border is to allow illegal immigrants to travel directly into the interior of the country without crossing the southern border—in direct violation of federal law,” Moody said in a statement. “His unlawful actions will not go unchecked, and we will continue to fight in court to force this president to follow public-safety immigration laws.”
The complaint, filed Tuesday in South Texas, seeks that the parole program be held unlawful and permanently set aside, and that “a non-statutory review action” be instituted against an industry head “for allegedly exceeding his statutory authority.”
Read the complaint below:
Announced on Jan. 5, the new parole processes for Cubans, Haitians and Nicaraguans would follow what the DHS has stated is currently being done for Venezuelan and Ukrainian migrants.
An application-based online process would see individuals from these countries considered on a case-by-case basis for temporary grants of parole to live and work in the U.S. for up to two years if they can “pass rigorous biometric and biographic national security and public safety screening and vetting; have a supporter in the United States who commits to providing financial and other support; and complete vaccinations and other public health requirements,” according to the DHS.
The program would permit up to 30,000 qualifying migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela to enter the U.S. “in a lawful and streamlined way... without having to make the dangerous journey to the border,” according to the DHS.
Biden spoke about the parole program on Jan. 5, announcing Mexico had also agreed to accept the same number of migrants from those four countries — 30,000 each month — who attempt to enter the U.S. illegally even if seeking asylum.
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