WEBVTT - Texas AG Ken Paxton on DACA Termination (Audio)

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<v Speaker 1>In late June, ten states, led by Texas and its

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<v Speaker 1>Attorney General Ken Paxton, set a September five deadline for

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<v Speaker 1>President Trump to say he would end the DOCCA deferred

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<v Speaker 1>deportation program. If Trump did neck by then, Paxton said

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<v Speaker 1>he'd see the administration in court. Yesterday, of course, the

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<v Speaker 1>administration did indeed announced plans to phase out DACCA. That's

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<v Speaker 1>the Obama policy that applies to eight hundred thousand people

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<v Speaker 1>who entered the US illegally as children. With us to

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<v Speaker 1>talk about the President's decision is Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

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<v Speaker 1>General Paxton, thanks so much for joining us. When when

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<v Speaker 1>we booked you yesterday, I thought I was going to

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<v Speaker 1>ask you about what seemed to be a clean victory

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<v Speaker 1>for you on this issue. But then last night the

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<v Speaker 1>President uh put out a tweet and he seemed to

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<v Speaker 1>suggest he might eventually reverse court. He tweeted that if

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<v Speaker 1>Congress doesn't legalize DACA in six months, he will quote

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<v Speaker 1>revisit this issue. Did you declare victory too soon? I

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<v Speaker 1>don't think so. Uh. You know, well, I don't know

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<v Speaker 1>what's going to happen six months down the road. It

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<v Speaker 1>should be obviously Congress dealing with this. That's all we've

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<v Speaker 1>ever made the argument on is this. Congress should deal

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<v Speaker 1>with this. This is not something that is in the

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<v Speaker 1>power of the presidency, and I think the president knows

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<v Speaker 1>that he criticized this during his campaign as unconstitutional, So

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<v Speaker 1>I I find it hard to believe that he would

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<v Speaker 1>go back and do something that is outside of his

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<v Speaker 1>area of responsibility or that he's given authority into the

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<v Speaker 1>Constitution to do. General, you were the leader, as Greg mentioned,

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<v Speaker 1>of a group of state attorneys general who gave Trump

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<v Speaker 1>a deadline to end DACA. Do you have any concerns

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<v Speaker 1>for these dreamers who played by the rules? Are country

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<v Speaker 1>set for them? Absolutely? I think that Congress does need

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<v Speaker 1>to deal with this issue and figure out what our

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<v Speaker 1>policy going forward is. But I do it's always important

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<v Speaker 1>how the process is done. You know, our founders didn't

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<v Speaker 1>want a king, and they certainly didn't. That's why we

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<v Speaker 1>set up That's why they set the constitution up the

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<v Speaker 1>way they did. And it really doesn't matter how the

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<v Speaker 1>process is done. And so I'm not opposed to Congress

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<v Speaker 1>addressing this issue, but I am opposed to the President

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<v Speaker 1>of States changing law and act acting outside of what

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<v Speaker 1>what his constitutional duties are well, what specifically should be

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<v Speaker 1>done with them? So you have eight hundred thousand people.

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<v Speaker 1>I don't know exactly how many of them are in Texas,

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<v Speaker 1>I know it's a large number. Right now. These are

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<v Speaker 1>people who have lives, They have the right to hold

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<v Speaker 1>down jobs, and they don't have to fear at least

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<v Speaker 1>immediately being being deported. Uh what what sorts of rights

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<v Speaker 1>should those people have? Well, so, look, the problem with

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<v Speaker 1>the president President Obama doing this is that it's a

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<v Speaker 1>house of cards. It's not built on anything done legally,

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<v Speaker 1>and so it's it's just as easily undone as you

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<v Speaker 1>saw yesterday. If if they're going to be granted certain

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<v Speaker 1>status like Obama Wana, which was a green card and

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<v Speaker 1>an ultimately citizenship um, that needs to be done congressionally

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<v Speaker 1>through statue because that that that is what controls immigration law.

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<v Speaker 1>So my suggestion is, hey, if if Congress wants to

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<v Speaker 1>address this issue, and I think they should, then deal

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<v Speaker 1>with it the right way and and change law. Have

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<v Speaker 1>the debate. General leaders in the construction industry have been

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<v Speaker 1>sounding the alarm across the country that there won't be

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<v Speaker 1>enough American born workers to rebuild as quickly as needed.

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<v Speaker 1>And the executive vice president of the Houston Contractors Association

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<v Speaker 1>said that even before Harvey hit, contractors were grappling with

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<v Speaker 1>a shortage of workers. And these jobs are pouring concrete

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<v Speaker 1>or hot else asphalt. Immigrants really helped to rebuild New

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<v Speaker 1>Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. Do you have any fears that

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<v Speaker 1>there won't be enough construction workers to rebuild Texas? So

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<v Speaker 1>this is another reason that Congress. You know, Congress has

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<v Speaker 1>six months to deal with this and to address this issue.

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<v Speaker 1>This is another reason that Congress should look at that

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<v Speaker 1>and figure out what does American need, What kind of

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<v Speaker 1>immigration policy do we need, What kind of people do

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<v Speaker 1>we want coming to this country, what would be most

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<v Speaker 1>beneficial to the American people and to the American on

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<v Speaker 1>me and and as those are legitimate questions to ask,

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<v Speaker 1>and I think they need to be asked and then

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<v Speaker 1>debated and then answered and voted on. So generalize. You know,

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<v Speaker 1>Congress sometimes has trouble getting things done, agreeing on things.

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<v Speaker 1>And and given the president's tweet last night about the

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<v Speaker 1>possibility that he will revisit this issue, of Congress can't

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<v Speaker 1>come up with an agreement in six months. If the

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<v Speaker 1>President decides to reinstate, DOCCA, will you file a lawsuit

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<v Speaker 1>at that point. Look, I'm not going to speculate on

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<v Speaker 1>what he's gonna do or how he's gonna do it.

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<v Speaker 1>My guess is that whatever he does, he'll do he'll

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<v Speaker 1>be very thorough about making sure that it's legitimately and

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<v Speaker 1>done under his authorities president and not made up laws.

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<v Speaker 1>So I haven't seen this president do that what what

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<v Speaker 1>Obama did, but and so don't. I don't expect him

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<v Speaker 1>to change course now and violate his constitutional authority. He's

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<v Speaker 1>He's done an amazing job following the law he's been

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<v Speaker 1>in office, and I expect him to continue it. General.

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<v Speaker 1>Just a question then about he signed more than forty

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<v Speaker 1>executive orders, ranging from stopping immigrants from some Muslim countries

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<v Speaker 1>from entering the US to stopping transgender people from serving

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<v Speaker 1>in the military. We have about forty five seconds. Why

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<v Speaker 1>isn't that wrong? If you feel that what President Obama

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<v Speaker 1>did by executive order is wrong, well, fundamentally two different things.

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<v Speaker 1>Obama we ended up suing the administration, UH twenty seven times.

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<v Speaker 1>We sued the federal government and Trump we looked at

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<v Speaker 1>his stuff. The travel band we actually supported, so the

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<v Speaker 1>difference is that that Obama was making up law, which

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<v Speaker 1>is what Congress is supposed to do. If you look

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<v Speaker 1>at the travel band and other other executive orders, he's

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<v Speaker 1>the president. President Trump was following specific outline statutes passed

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<v Speaker 1>by Congress, and so he's acting within his authority by

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<v Speaker 1>statute and by Constitution versus Obama just saying I'm not

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<v Speaker 1>gonna work with cargners, I'm going to become carners. There's

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<v Speaker 1>a big difference. I want to thank our guests. That

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<v Speaker 1>was Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. He was a leader

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<v Speaker 1>in challenging Sident Obama's defer deportation policies. Uh. President Trump

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<v Speaker 1>inherited those and under threat of legal action from General Paxixton,

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<v Speaker 1>President Trump yesterday announced that he would phase out the

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<v Speaker 1>program known as DACA. Thanks very much, Attorney General Ken Paxton.