Washington DC - Republicans are leading a legal effort to shut down a program set up by President Joe Biden that seeks to give undocumented families a new path to citizenship.

On Friday, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced that he has filed a joint lawsuit with American First Legal and 15 other Republican-run states, arguing that the plan "provides executive amnesty and a path to citizenship to over 1 million immigrants who entered our country illegally."

"The Biden-Harris administration is actively working to turn the United States into a nation without borders and a country without laws," Paxton added.

His effort was praised by a number of other critics, including Elon Musk, who claimed Democrats are "importing voters."

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Biden's Keep Families Together program aims to "help certain noncitizen spouses and children apply for lawful permanent residence – status that they are already eligible for – without [having to leave] the country."

To be eligible, participants must have lived in the US for more than 10 years, pass an extensive background check, have been married by June 17, pay a $580 fee, and then fill out a lengthy application.

The program began accepting applications on Monday, and could potentially provide nearly half a million migrants with a new path to legal status.

In a statement, the bipartisan immigration justice group FWD.us described the plan as "lawful," and accused critics of being motivated by "the cruelty of tearing families apart."