US Supreme Court: United States V Texas

WASHINGTON D.C.- On April 18, 2016, the line to view the day’s US Supreme Court case stretches around the block. In fact, the line has been pushed back to make room for the crowds of reporters, television crews, and protesters clustering below the steps. Some are setting up, some are starting to record, and some are walking around the area, interviewing case-watching hopefuls and protesters, who are holding up signs and chanting in both English and Spanish. The most common words are “Sí, se puede”- ‘Yes, we can!’.

What can they do? They can win approval of a controversial case. President Barack Obama’s executive action on immigration has been met with reluctance and opposition by some states, headed by the State of Texas. The action would give more immigrants the deferred action status, meaning they would be granted temporary amnesty. Some states argued that if they have programs to support immigrants, it would be costing their taxpayers much more if Obama’s action came to pass. This case has frozen the action for a couple of years now.

Louis Villeda, who emigrated to the United States from Mexico 40 years ago, explains why he thinks this case is so important. He says that since coming to the US, he’s had to work very hard, but he’s often been discriminated against, sometimes having to deal with physical violence. He doesn’t want other immigrants to have the same experience. “Everybody has the opportunity to live... the most peaceful... the most special [life]. I want [my kids] to be treated the same as others.”

I got in the five-minute line that day, to see a bit of the case. The courtroom itself was very formal-looking, with classical architecture and regal-looking red curtains, but the atmosphere of the court was much more casual than I was expecting. Because this was such a high-profile case, many people were watching it, including Beverley McLachlin, the Chief Justice of the Canadian Supreme Court. At the time, the justices were questioning one of the lawyers for the prosecution. Justice Breyer referenced to him an earlier case where the court had ruled that lawsuits about where tax money went were invalid, on the simple basis that if everyone sued the government for everything they didn’t like that was paid for by taxes, the court system would be swamped with petty lawsuits every time anyone someone didn’t like got elected.

This was actually a particularly special case — while on most argument days, the supreme court heard two hour-long cases, U.S. v Texas was the only case discussed that day, with an hour and a half scheduled for it. This underlines the case’s importance, and relevance to today’s political discussion. Immigration reform is a big issue on the American campaign trails this year which affects people all over the continent, and is therefore something we should all be thinking about these next few weeks as we wait for the court’s decision.

Walsh, Mark. "A “view” from the Court: Status Pending." Supreme Court of the United States Blog. SCOTUSblog, 18 Apr. 2016. Web. 30 Apr. 2016.