Convenience Big Store: Supreme Court blocks Biden from lifting Title 42 border policy

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Good morning, Texas. The Supreme Court will hear full arguments over the pandemic-era Title 42 border policy.

Title 42 will remain in place as Supreme Court agrees to hear arguments in February

The COVID-era Title 42 has been used to turn away millions of migrants from the U.S. border with Mexico. Put in place by the previous administration, President Joe Biden has sought to repeal the policy, but Republican attorneys general — including Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton — have tied it up in the courts.

The high court will hear the case over whether states should be allowed to intervene and defend the policy during the session beginning in February. And the court voted 5-4 on Tuesday, with Justice Neil Gorsuch joining the left-leaning justices in dissent, to keep the approach in effect while the legal challenge plays out.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican, called the decision a "huge victory" for the state and country.

"I will continue to fight at every turn and do everything in my power to help secure our border and keep Texans safe," he wrote in a tweet Tuesday.

Read the full story here.

Edward McKinley
State Government Reporter
edward.mckinley@chron.com

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What We're Reading

• Broken hearts lead to broken traditions in Uvalde as Mata family celebrates first holidays without Tess (The Texas Tribune)

• The Best Restaurant in Texas, According to Guy Fieri (NBC DFW)

• Texas Music Legends Look Back on Floore's Country Store (Texas Monthly)

• At the 'apex' of his power, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick rules absolute in Texas Senate (The Dallas Morning News)

One last thing…

"Gov. Abbott abandoned children on the side of the road in below freezing temperatures on Christmas Eve without coordinating with any federal or local authorities," a White House representative, Abdullah Hasan, said in a statement. "This was a cruel, dangerous, and shameful stunt."