Robert Bentley signs on to Texas immigration lawsuit

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[Photo Credit: AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo]

Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley announced Monday that he has signed an Amicus Curiae, along with six other states, to the United States Supreme Court to support a Texas lawsuit against executive actions on immigration by President Barack Obama.

“The President’s executive amnesty order severely impacts states, and governors are on the front lines in protecting states’ rights from federal encroachment,” Bentley said in a statement. “Immigration is an important issue that our country must address, and Congress is the proper place for the debate.  The President’s executive amnesty order disregards the role Congress plays in policy decisions.”

The lawsuit contends that the president’s executive actions are an “overreach” of authority under the Take Care Clause of the United States Constitution. The clause essentially requires that the president “take care that the laws be faithfully executed.”

“The President cannot do by executive action what the Congress has not authorized by legislation,” the statement from Bentley’s office said. “The amicus brief explores two important factors, including protecting the executive branch in states from irreparable injuries in implementing illegal processes and policies, and protects states from executive encroachments on state sovereignty when the President makes law unilaterally, without congressional action.”

Bentley’s statement continues by saying that the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents Act (DAPA), which would allow illegal immigrants with children in the U.S. to attain work permits and not be separated from their children, is outside of the president’s “statutory and constitutional authority.”

The lawsuit contends that Obama’s actions are “making lawful what Congress has declared unlawful” and the executive actions are therefore in violation of the aforementioned clause.

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