Federal court orders Trump administration to fully reinstate DACA

For a while, President Donald Trump's push to end Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, found partial success. But that's no longer the case.

A federal court ordered the Trump administration to fully restore DACA, the Obama-era program that protects eligible young immigrants from deportation.

The Dec. 4 ruling means that the administration has to once again accept applications from immigrants seeking DACA protection for the first time. It also means that the administration must resume granting DACA protection and work permits for two-year periods. (The administration had reduced their validity from two years to one.) Immigration officials must also continue accepting DACA renewal applications.

While DACA has been restored, a separate legal challenge is pending. A federal court in Houston is scheduled to consider a lawsuit brought by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton seeking to invalidate DACA.

Ending DACA was one of two programs Trump sought to end from the Obama years. Trump was able to end another program that would have benefited a separate group of immigrants, Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents, or DAPA. That other program never went into effect.

Trump promised to end Obama's programs intended to defer deportations. One program was ended; the other has been mired in litigation and is currently under court order to continue. We rate this promise on ending both programs a Compromise.