A federal judge has blocked the Biden-Harris administration from allowing illegal aliens to receive taxpayer-funded Obamacare.
The Biden-Harris administration’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) attempted to redefine the phrase “lawfully present” to allow certain illegal aliens — DACA recipients, a.k.a. illegal aliens who came to the U.S. as children — to be eligible for Obamacare. This is the left’s latest favorite tactic — when they can’t change the law to suit their radical efforts, they simply try to redefine the words in the law to allow them to push through their agenda.
On Monday, U.S. District Judge Daniel Traynor granted a request to block CMS’ new policy, blocking them from allowing illegal aliens with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) status to enroll in Obamacare.
In his ruling, Traynor confirmed that Kansas and the 18 Republican attorneys general who sued the Biden-Harris administration were likely to succeed in their efforts, so he gave them a stay against the policy.
The federal judge, who is based in North Dakota, explained that CMS had broken the law earlier this year when it redefined the term “lawfully present” to include DACA recipients — as they are obviously illegal aliens and thus cannot be deemed lawfully present in the country, even if former President Barack Obama shielded them from deportation with the DACA executive order.
“The authority granted to CMS by the ACA [Affordable Care Act] is to ascertain whether an individual meets the requirements for lawful status. It by no means allows the agency to circumvent congressional authority and redefine the term ‘lawfully present,’” Traynor wrote.
“As it currently stands, the ACA does not allow federal healthcare subsidies or coverage for aliens who are unlawfully present in the United States,” the judge added.
Traynor went on to agree with the argument from the Republican attorneys general, which stated that the policy would only serve to encourage illegal aliens to remain in their states because their healthcare would be funded by the American people.
Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach (R), who spearheaded the lawsuit, praised Traynor’s decision in a statement.
“Big win for the rule of law. Congress never intended that illegal aliens should receive Obama care benefits,” Kobach said. “Indeed, two laws prohibit them from receiving such benefits. The Biden administration tried to break those laws. But we fought back, and defeated the Justice Department.”
Big win for the rule of law. Congress never intended that illegal aliens should receive Obama care benefits. Indeed, two laws prohibit them from receiving such benefits. The Biden administration tried to break those laws. But we fought back, and defeated the Justice Department. pic.twitter.com/tBZZLzH2in
— Kris W. Kobach (@KrisKobach1787) December 9, 2024
Kobach was joined in the lawsuit by the Republican attorneys general of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.
President-elect Donald Trump also opposed the rule change. In May, Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt declared the change to be “unfair and unsustainable.”
“Joe Biden’s handouts for illegal immigrants are especially devastating to Black Americans, Hispanic Americans, and union workers who are forced to watch their jobs and public resources stolen by people who illegally entered our country,” Leavitt, who will be serving as White House press secretary in Trump’s second term, said at the time.
