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DAPA (Deferred Action for Parents)
November 20, 2014
DAPA would have extended temporary protection to approximately 4 million undocumented immigrants who were parents of US citizens or legal residents. The Fifth Circuit found it likely exceeded prosecutorial discretion, and the Supreme Court deadlocked 4-4 in 2016. Unlike DACA, DAPA was never implemented. The scale (4M vs 800K) made separation-of-powers concerns more acute.
Lens Agreement
Significant Disagreement
Constitutional floor conflict across 1 dimension
Constitutional Floor
ConflictCFI Score
40Mixed
Steelman Defense
+15.9Stronger defense than consensus
Key Constitutional Issues
Floor Conflicts
Separation
3 of 5 frameworks scored −2 (severe tension)
Tension Areas
Equal
3 of 5 frameworks identified moderate tension
Democratic
3 of 5 frameworks identified moderate tension
Sovereignty
3 of 5 frameworks identified moderate tension
Most Contested
Equal
High disagreement across lenses (variance 1.60)
Dimensional Extremes
Strongest: Welfare
Mean score +1.4 — 5 of 5 lenses scored positively
Weakest: Democratic
Mean score -1.4 — 2 lenses found strong tension
Dimensional Profile
Dimension Scores by Lens
Scoring Matrix
| Dimension | Textualist | Originalist | Doctrinalist | Living | Pragmatist | Steelman |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rights | -1 | -1 | 0 | +1 | +1 | +1 |
| Equal | -1 | -1 | -1 | +2 | +1 | +1 |
| Democratic | -2 | -2 | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 |
| Separation | -2 | -2 | -2 | 0 | -1 | -1 |
| Due Process | 0 | 0 | 0 | +1 | +1 | +1 |
| Welfare | +1 | +1 | +1 | +2 | +2 | +2 |
| Sovereignty | -1 | -1 | -1 | +1 | 0 | 0 |
Lens Narratives
Click to expand each constitutional lens's reasoning. Case citations are tagged for fidelity.
Steelman Analysis
While prosecutorial discretion can encompass categorical policies, DAPA's scope without Congressional engagement created democratic legitimacy concerns. Phased implementation with Congressional notice might have been safer.
Delta by Dimension
Precedent Anchoring
| Similar EO | Admin | Similarity | CFI | Delta |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Student Loan Forgiveness Plan | Biden | 96% | 36.1 | +4.2 |
| DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) | Obama | 94% | 46.0 | -5.6 |
| Iran Nuclear Agreement (JCPOA) | Obama | 93% | 40.9 | -0.5 |
| Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad | Biden | 91% | 46.1 | -5.8 |
| Protecting Access to Reproductive Healthcare Services | Biden | 87% | 50.1 | -9.8 |
All similar EOs have CFI scores within 15 points — evaluation is well-anchored to precedent.