GOP Lawmakers File Brief To Appeals Court In Support Of Halting Executive Amnesty

Republican lawmakers say they have filed a brief in support of a federal district court’s decision to block President Obama’s executive amnesty.

“President Obama’s executive overreach on immigration poses a clear and present danger to our Constitution and it’s imperative that the President’s actions continue to be blocked so that the states’ lawsuit can move forward in the courts,” House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), one of the lawmakers who signed onto the brief, said Wednesday.

Last month, U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen temporarily halted Obama’s executive amnesty — ruling in favor of 26 states challenging the actions — to allow the case breathing room to work through the courts.

The Obama administration has appealed the preliminary injunction to the 5th Court of Appeals, seeking to allow the executive amnesty programs to go forward.

Wednesday, Goodlatte, Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) filed an amicus brief to the the appeals court in support of Hanen’s decision and the states’ case.

“This Court should maintain the status quo preserved by the preliminary injunction until a final decision is reached on the merits,” their brief, filed with the American Center for Law and Justice, reads in part. “Appellants will suffer no harm in the absence of a stay, while issuing the stay will substantially harm Appellees and runs counter to public interests.”

According to the lawmakers, Obama’s executive amnesty represents a dangerous overreach in executive authority and the lawsuit is an important rebuttal to those actions.

“As I have said all along and a federal court affirmed, President Obama exceeded his authority when he went around Congress to unilaterally change our nation’s immigration laws,” Cornyn said. “But since the Administration refuses to obey the court’s ruling, we will continue to fight to reverse the President’s unconstitutional overreach and respect the rule of law.”

The 26 states challenging the executive actions include: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.