Members of Congress Fight for Arizona’s Right to Protect Its Borders

Groups Urge Federal Appeals Court to Uphold Ariz. Immigration Law

WASHINGTON, Sept. 3, 2010— The American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) and the Immigration Reform Law Institute (IRLI) filed an amicus brief on behalf of 66 members of Congress urging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to uphold Arizona's new immigration law.  In July, key provisions of the law were struck down as unconstitutional by a federal district court.  The amicus brief asks the appeals court to reverse the district court decision and order that a motion for a preliminary and permanent injunction by the U.S. Department of Justice, which filed the suit challenging the law, be denied. 

"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," said Jay Sekulow, chief counsel of the ACLJ.  "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 filed yesterday 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. The brief argues:  "Congress has plenary power to prescribe the immigration laws and the Executive must follow Congress's direction."

Further, the brief asserts that provisions of the Arizona law "are consistent with federal immigration policy that promotes increasingly greater roles for states in enforcing immigration law."  And, according to the brief, the district court wrongly "held that the Executive's prosecutorial discretion and foreign policy preempt Arizona's law.  The district court ignored Congress's intent in evaluating the Administration's preemption claims."  Finally, the brief argues that if the Court of Appeals "does not reverse the district court's decision, preemption analysis will no longer turn on congressional intent, but on each Administration's political views."

The brief concludes that Arizona's law is compatible with federal law.  "The federal and state alien registration laws in this case are seamlessly integrated. . . Because S.B. 1070 mirrors federal immigration provisions, its plainly legitimate sweep is indisputable. . ." 

The brief is located here.

The ACLJ, along with the Immigration Reform Law Institute, filed the brief with the 9th Circuit on behalf of 66 members of Congress including 5 members of the U.S. Senate and 61 members of the U.S. House of Representatives.

The members of the 111th Congress represented in the brief include Arizona Congressman Trent Franks and California Congressman Brian Bilbray, who assisted in generating Congressional participation in the brief. 

Also represented in the brief are Sen. John Barrasso, Sen. Jim DeMint, Sen. James Inhofe, Sen. David Vitter, Sen. Roger Wicker, Robert Aderholt, Rodney Alexander, Michele Bachmann, Spencer Bachus, J. Gresham Barrett, Rob Bishop, Marsha Blackburn, John Boozman, Paul Broun, Ginny Brown-Waite, Michael Burgess, Dan Burton, Ken Calvert, John Campbell, John Carter, Jason Chaffetz, Howard Coble, Mike Coffman, John Culberson, Geoff Davis, John Fleming, Randy Forbes, Virginia Foxx, Elton Gallegly, Scott Garrett, Phil Gingrey, Louie Gohmert, Bob Goodlatte, Ralph Hall, Dean Heller, Wally Herger, Pete Hoekstra, Duncan Hunter, Walter Jones, Jim Jordan, Steve King, Jack Kingston, John Kline, Doug Lamborn, Robert Latta, Don Manzullo, Patrick McHenry, Gary Miller, Jeff Miller, Jerry Moran, Sue Myrick, Randy Neugebauer, Joe Pitts, Ted Poe, Bill Posey, Tom Price, Ed Royce, John Shadegg, Bill Shuster, Lamar Smith, John Sullivan, Gene Taylor, Todd Tiahrt and Ed Whitfield.

Led by Chief Counsel Jay Sekulow, the American Center for Law and Justice focuses on constitutional law and is based in Washington, D.C.  The ACLJ is online at www.aclj.org.  Its online newsroom is available at DeMossNews.com/ACLJ.

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