This court that just had the hearing.
I agree with you - the legal precedent is extremely clear and courts, unlike the short news cycle in the media, are bound by precedent.
The 9th Circuit has gone far afield on many issues regarding social issues, but despite the “social justice” aspect of this lawsuit the law is quite clear and established. In fact, I would be willing to bet there are decisions in every circuit from appeals by illegal aliens that uphold the law. There is also the real important issue of standing - another clear area legally that is a very difficult hurdle for any state to overcome given the statutory authority of Fedgov for borders.
There is another aspect to this case that is far more dangerous - the separation of powers. This deserves the most attention, but it has received very little. If the court upheld this ruling one could make an argument that every executive action could be stalled, stopped, or impeded by the courts. It would be a defacto usurpation of executive authority by a judiciary that is not elected and it could create an endless judicial review of every executive action if the opposition party abused the right to sue. The 9th Circuit has to be aware of this and it is for this reason the case is DOA at SCOTUS.
Well, I hope you're right but my perception of the Ninth Circuit is that they are so partisan that they will completely ignore the law and legal precedents.