GOP-led states sue over decision to end Trump-era pandemic restrictions at the US border

CNN

By Raja Razek and Devan Cole, CNN

Three Republican-led states are suing the Biden administration seeking to stop it from ending Trump-era pandemic restrictions that effectively blocked migrants from entering the US.

“This suit challenges an imminent, man-made, self-inflicted calamity: the abrupt elimination of the only safety valve preventing this administration’s disastrous border policies from devolving into an unmitigated chaos and catastrophe,” reads the suit, which was filed Sunday in Louisiana against the Biden administration by Missouri, Arizona and Louisiana.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Friday that on May 23 it will end Title 42, a public health authority invoked by then-President Donald Trump at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. The restrictions had been criticized by immigrant advocates, public health experts and even officials within the Trump administration who believed it to be driven by political motivations.

The plaintiffs claim the Biden administration’s plans to roll back the policy are “arbitrary and capricious” because the government didn’t follow the rules required to make such a change.

The CDC declined CNN’s request for comment, saying it doesn’t comment on pending litigation.

Immigrant rights advocates who work along the border and leading Democratic lawmakers have been pushing the administration to end Title 42, arguing the public health restriction was merely a pretext for the US to stop vulnerable people from seeking asylum. Many have praised reports that the policy will be ending soon, while also criticizing the delay.

Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers have been lambasting the Biden administration for even considering lifting Title 42.

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CNN’s Priscilla Alvarez contributed to this report.