9th Circuit Urged to Uphold AZ Immigration Law

We have just filed a critical amicus brief for 66 members of Congress - a brief that urges the U.S. Court of Appeals to uphold the Arizona immigration law.

As you may recall, a federal district court judge in July blocked key provisions of the AZ law from being implemented.  We were extremely disappointed with that decision.  That ruling was the result of a federal challenge by the U.S. Department of Justice which is trying to have the AZ law declared unconstitutional.  We filed an amicus brief with the federal district court on behalf of members of Congress supporting the AZ law.

Of course, we understand - as do the members of Congress - that Arizona has a constitutional right to protect its citizens and its borders. 

It is clear the Arizona law that regulates immigration was put in place to protect its citizens and we're hopeful the federal appeals court will take the action necessary to clear the way for this vital measure to be implemented in its entirety.

It's also clear that the federal district court erred in its decision by failing to protect Arizona's constitutional right to protect its borders and its citizens.  This case certainly highlights the importance of the separation of powers and we're confident that ultimately the federal government's lawsuit will be viewed exactly as it should: a constitutional overreach. 

There's no question that Arizona's immigration law complements federal law and we're hopeful the enforcement of the Arizona law - in its entirety - ultimately will occur.

The amicus brief, which is posted here, asserts that the lawsuit reveals the incompatibility between the Acts of Congress establishing immigration policy and the current Administration's views on immigration.  "The clash between the federal immigration laws and the Administration's policy preferences require the Court to closely scrutinize the Administration's preemption claims," the brief contends.  We worked on this brief with the Immigration Reform Law Institute.

You can read more about the specifics of our brief and get a complete list of the members of Congress who have signed on to the brief by visiting our latest post in our Legislative Alert section which is located here.

We will keep you posted as this case unfolds.