OBAMA LAWYERS LIE TO THE COURT:  Department of Justice lawyers have restated their apology to federal judge Andrew Hanen of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas.  The DOJ admits that it checked with the White House before issuing the apology, suggesting that DOJ lawyers understood the magnitude of their misrepresentation to the court.

The apology comes in the context of the Texas-led 26-State lawsuit against the Obama Administration, challenging the second and third of the President’s three unilateral executive orders on immigration: the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA) and the expanded Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA+).

In February, Judge Hanen issued a preliminary injunction halting the DAPA and DACA+ programs–finding that the plaintiff-States had proven both irreparable harm and a “likelihood of success” on the merits of their legal claims.  Hanen’s issuance of an injunction should have stopped both DAPA and DACA+ from being implemented at all, but in early March, DOJ admitted that it had begun to implement DACA+, and in fact had already issued work permits and expanded deportation protection to over 100,000 additional illegals.

Hanen is currently considering whether/how to further sanction the DOJ for its transgression, though he has already ruled out striking the government’s pleadings and entering judgment for plaintiff-States.

DOJ has appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, asking that court to issue a stay of Judge Hanen’s preliminary injunction.  My guess is that the Fifth Circuit won’t interfere with Hanen’s ruling.  And Hanen ought to hold the DOJ lawyers in contempt (though I doubt he will).  Maybe he should have them write “I will not lie to the court” 1,000 times on a blackboard or walk around in front of the courthouse with a sandwich board sign.