Attorney General Jeff Sessions said the Trump Administration has decided to rescind Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, a program enacted by former President Barack Obama that has prevented nearly 800,000 immigrants from deportation since 2012.
The Trump Administration decided to phase out the program following the threat of legal action by Republican attorneys general from nine states against DACA. Congress now has six months to develop a policy that decides the fate of Dreamers, or those who have benefitted from the program.
In a letter to Acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary Elaine Duke on Monday, Sessions wrote that the program “was an unconstitutional exercise of authority by the Executive Branch” that would not withstand a court challenge.
“In light of the costs and burdens that will be imposed on DHS associated with rescinding this policy, DHS should consider an orderly and efficient wind-down process,” Sessions wrote. “Proper enforcement of our immigration laws is, as President Trump consistently said, critical to the national interest and to the restoration of the rule of law in our country.”
Read his full letter below.
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Write to Mahita Gajanan at mahita.gajanan@time.com
