A new Biden administration program aimed at easing the path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants married to American citizens was temporarily blocked by a federal judge in Texas on Monday.
It is estimated the program, known as “Keeping Families Together,” could help about 500,000 immigrants who have American spouses by allowing them to stay in the U.S. while going through the immigration process.
The pause issued by the judge blocks the program for at least two weeks and comes just days after Texas and 15 other Republican-led states filed a lawsuit to end the policy. Those states accuse the Biden administration of violating immigration law and bypassing Congress for “blatant political purposes.”
The White House announced the program in June and the Department of Homeland Security began accepting applications for it last week.
