JEFFERSON CITY – Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt Tuesday filed a response brief to the Department of Justice’s appeal in the Migrant Protection Protocols or “Remain in Mexico” case brought by Missouri and Texas. The brief was filed in the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, and oral argument in this case is scheduled for November 2, 2021.
“While the crisis at the border continues to worsen, the Biden Administration terminated a successful tool to help combat that crisis and secure the border – the Migrant Protection Protocols, or the ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy. In April, we sued over that termination and won at the district court, court of appeals, and the United States Supreme Court, requiring the Biden Administration to reimplement the policy,” said Attorney General Schmitt. “We’re vigorously defending the district court’s permanent injunction, and look forward to making our case on November 2nd.”
The brief makes four main arguments: that the district court correctly concluded that the states have standing, that the district court correctly determined that the decision to terminate MPP is subject to judicial review, that the district court correctly determined that the decision to terminate MPP was arbitrary and capricious, and that the district court correctly concluded that the termination of MPP led appellants to violate systemically Section 1225.
The brief states, “This Court and the district court got it right, as their well-reasoned findings and conclusions amply demonstrate. Appellants request reversal of a permanent injunction supported by a meticulous, 53-page opinion following a full trial on the merits. As explained in this Court’s similarly thorough 34-page opinion, the district court’s decision rests on several ‘relevant’ and ‘largely uncontested’ findings of fact and conclusions of law set forth in painstaking detail. Most relevant here, the district court held that Appellants’ termination of the effective Migrant Protection Protocols was arbitrary and capricious and further violated the Immigration and Nationality Act (‘INA’) in ‘the particular circumstances’ of this case.”
The brief continues, “The termination of MPP was unlawful in at least two key ways. First, it was arbitrary and capricious… Second, terminating MPP caused DHS to violate systematically the mandatory-detention provisions in Section 1225.”
The Missouri and Texas Attorney General’s Offices are asking the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals to uphold the judgment of the district court and keep in place the permanent injunction requiring the Biden Administration to re-implement the “Remain in Mexico” Policy.
In April, Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed suit against the Biden Administration over their cancellation of the “Remain in Mexico” policy.
In August, the district court in Texas issued a nationwide permanent injunction, requiring the Biden Administration to re-implement the program. The Office then prevailed at the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court as both courts denied the Department of Justice’s request for a stay pending appeal.
Recently, as the Haitian border crisis continues to deteriorate, the Office filed a motion to enforce the permanent injunction, arguing the Biden Administration has not been re-implementing the program in good faith.
Last week, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals again sided with the Missouri Attorney General’s Office and denied the Department of Justice’s request to stay this case pending administrative review.
Today, the Missouri and Texas Attorney General’s Offices filed their response brief in that appeal, which can be found here: https://ago.mo.gov/docs/default-source/press-releases/mpp-merits-brief.pdf?sfvrsn=66dc2c56_2