Court Issues New Defeat for Obama Immigration Order

President Barack Obama has suffered another defeat in court on his executive order for illegal immigrants.

The president's order protecting young illegal immigrants from deportation is still on hold after a federal appeals court ruled against lifting a federal court order against the president's action.

Obama's order would have protected as many as 5 million immigrants living in the United States from being deported.

Republicans criticized the president for overreaching his constitutional powers, and 26 states sued to stop the administration from implementing the program.

"This decision is a victory for those committed to preserving the rule of law in America," Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said in a statement.

Now the order won't go into effect until the courts decide if the president has the legal authority to make such a move.

U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen had issued a temporary injunction on Feb. 16 to block the plan from taking effect while the lawsuit works its way through the courts.

But the Justice Department later told Hanen that more than 108,000 people had already received three-year reprieves from deportation as well as work permits.

Hanen said the federal government had been "misleading," but he declined to sanction the government's attorneys.

Earlier this month, the U.S. government told Hanen it had mistakenly awarded three-year work permits to another 2,000 people.