In late June, ten states, led by Texas and its Attorney General Ken Paxton, set a September five deadline for President Trump to say he would end the DOCCA deferred deportation program. If Trump did neck by then, Paxton said he'd see the administration in court. Yesterday, of course, the administration did indeed announced plans to phase out DACCA. That's the Obama policy that applies to eight hundred thousand people
who entered the US illegally as children. With us to talk about the President's decision is Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. General Paxton, thanks so much for joining us. When when we booked you yesterday, I thought I was going to ask you about what seemed to be a clean victory for you on this issue. But then last night the President uh put out a tweet and he seemed to suggest he might eventually reverse court. He tweeted that if Congress doesn't legalize DACA in six months, he will quote
revisit this issue. Did you declare victory too soon? I don't think so. Uh. You know, well, I don't know what's going to happen six months down the road. It should be obviously Congress dealing with this. That's all we've ever made the argument on is this. Congress should deal
with this. This is not something that is in the power of the presidency, and I think the president knows that he criticized this during his campaign as unconstitutional, So I I find it hard to believe that he would go back and do something that is outside of his area of responsibility or that he's given authority into the Constitution to do. General, you were the leader, as Greg mentioned, of a group of state attorneys general who gave Trump a deadline to end DACA. Do you have any concerns
for these dreamers who played by the rules? Are country set for them? Absolutely? I think that Congress does need to deal with this issue and figure out what our policy going forward is. But I do it's always important how the process is done. You know, our founders didn't want a king, and they certainly didn't. That's why we set up That's why they set the constitution up the way they did. And it really doesn't matter how the
process is done. And so I'm not opposed to Congress addressing this issue, but I am opposed to the President of States changing law and act acting outside of what what his constitutional duties are well, what specifically should be done with them? So you have eight hundred thousand people. I don't know exactly how many of them are in Texas, I know it's a large number. Right now. These are people who have lives, They have the right to hold down jobs, and they don't have to fear at least
immediately being being deported. Uh what what sorts of rights should those people have? Well, so, look, the problem with the president President Obama doing this is that it's a house of cards. It's not built on anything done legally, and so it's it's just as easily undone as you
saw yesterday. If if they're going to be granted certain status like Obama Wana, which was a green card and an ultimately citizenship um, that needs to be done congressionally through statue because that that that is what controls immigration law. So my suggestion is, hey, if if Congress wants to address this issue, and I think they should, then deal with it the right way and and change law. Have
the debate. General leaders in the construction industry have been sounding the alarm across the country that there won't be enough American born workers to rebuild as quickly as needed. And the executive vice president of the Houston Contractors Association said that even before Harvey hit, contractors were grappling with a shortage of workers. And these jobs are pouring concrete or hot else asphalt. Immigrants really helped to rebuild New
Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Do you have any fears that there won't be enough construction workers to rebuild Texas? So this is another reason that Congress. You know, Congress has six months to deal with this and to address this issue.
This is another reason that Congress should look at that and figure out what does American need, What kind of immigration policy do we need, What kind of people do we want coming to this country, what would be most beneficial to the American people and to the American on me and and as those are legitimate questions to ask, and I think they need to be asked and then
debated and then answered and voted on. So generalize. You know, Congress sometimes has trouble getting things done, agreeing on things. And and given the president's tweet last night about the possibility that he will revisit this issue, of Congress can't come up with an agreement in six months. If the President decides to reinstate, DOCCA, will you file a lawsuit at that point. Look, I'm not going to speculate on what he's gonna do or how he's gonna do it.
My guess is that whatever he does, he'll do he'll be very thorough about making sure that it's legitimately and done under his authorities president and not made up laws. So I haven't seen this president do that what what Obama did, but and so don't. I don't expect him to change course now and violate his constitutional authority. He's He's done an amazing job following the law he's been in office, and I expect him to continue it. General.
Just a question then about he signed more than forty executive orders, ranging from stopping immigrants from some Muslim countries from entering the US to stopping transgender people from serving in the military. We have about forty five seconds. Why isn't that wrong? If you feel that what President Obama did by executive order is wrong, well, fundamentally two different things. Obama we ended up suing the administration, UH twenty seven times.
We sued the federal government and Trump we looked at his stuff. The travel band we actually supported, so the difference is that that Obama was making up law, which is what Congress is supposed to do. If you look at the travel band and other other executive orders, he's the president. President Trump was following specific outline statutes passed by Congress, and so he's acting within his authority by statute and by Constitution versus Obama just saying I'm not
gonna work with cargners, I'm going to become carners. There's a big difference. I want to thank our guests. That was Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. He was a leader in challenging Sident Obama's defer deportation policies. Uh. President Trump inherited those and under threat of legal action from General Paxixton, President Trump yesterday announced that he would phase out the program known as DACA. Thanks very much, Attorney General Ken Paxton.