DHS Sec. Wolf: DACA program is clearly unlawful
Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf reacts to Supreme Court striking down Trump's bid to end immigration protections.
The Supreme Court's ruling against the Trump administration's effort to end the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program is "very troubling," acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf said Thursday.
"What I can tell you is that the DACA program is clearly unlawful," Wolf told "Hannity."
SUPREME COURT RULES AGAINST TRUMP ADMINISTRATION BID TO END DACA PROGRAM
"What we saw under the Obama Administration ... [is] they made this program out of thin air, did it on a turn of a dime," Worlf continued. "This administration has thought long about this ... decided to wind this unlawful program down over a series of six months and again, what we have is a Supreme Court saying that's not good enough, you need to go back at it and relook at that, and that is very troubling to me."
In a 5-4 decision, with Chief Justice John Roberts joining his liberal counterparts to author the opinion, the Supreme Court decided Thursday that the order to rescind DACA violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), which sets out rulemaking procedures for federal agencies.
The court's decision was based on technicalities and not the actual merit of the program, Wolf explained.
"The Supreme Court today, in their opinion, said the Department of Homeland Security has the authority to rescind it ... they simply didn't like the way they were doing it," he explained.
Wolf said the administration has been "begging Congress" to figure out what to do about DACA recipients, but said lawmakers"have decided not to do this time and time again."
"Congress is the right role to do this," he urged.
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"The president has been clear ... and wants a legal solution and not a political solution to this issue.
"[We're] very disappointed in the decision today, but we will keep at it."
Fox News' Ronn Blitzer contributed to this report.
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