Federal judge to temporarily block Biden admin from lifting Title 42 at border

A federal judge said Monday he intends to temporarily block the Biden administration from lifting the coronavirus border restriction, known as Title 42.

It would be a victory for the Republican-led states and some Democrats who sued to keep the immigration policy in the Trump administration.

In a virtual status conference Monday, U.S. District Judge Robert R. Summerhays of the Western District of Louisiana announced his intent to grant the motion.

This is a huge victory for border security, but the fight continues, he wrote.

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas announced this month that the administration would remove the Title 42 restrictions on May 23, which will allow families and single adult asylum seekers who had been turned away from the U.S. border during the Pandemic to enter the U.S. and make asylum claims.

NBC News reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment on the judge's remarks.

The suit was originally filed by Missouri, Louisiana, and Arizona in the U.S. District Court in Louisiana earlier this month. The three Democratic-led states that signed onto the lawsuit have Republicans as their attorneys general.

The suit was brought by the Biden administration after it was able to wind down Title 42 before its May 23 effective date. It is not clear whether the judge's order will stop the Biden administration from lifting Title 42 on May 23 or prevent the administration from acting before its planned deadline. The parties in the case are expected to hold a meeting on the specifics in an effort to reach consensus.

Since March 2020, the federal government has been able to expel immigrants and asylum seekers due to the public health rule. It prevented more than 1.7 million attempts to cross the U.S. border.

After meeting with President Joe Biden at the White House on Monday, members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus blasted the temporary restraining order.

I want to remind everyone that Title 42 is a public health authority. It is not an immigration tool, it is a public health authority that the CDC has said is no longer necessary, said Rep. Nanette Diaz Barrag n, D-Calif., the vice chair of the caucus.

After the judge announced, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said that the Biden administration intended to move ahead with implementation, citing a multipart strategy that Secretary Mayorkas has been leading and overseeing for the past several months. The Biden administration has come under fire from Republicans and immigration advocates for its handling of the Trump-era rule.

At least a dozen Democrats in pivotal races this year oppose the planned policy change, arguing that it would increase migration and potentially lead to national security risks.

The Biden administration and its allies have maintained that removing the rule would mean a return to pre-pandemic policies, arguing that migrants would be removed unless they are able to establish a legal basis to remain in the U.S.