Arizona sheriff sues Obama over immigration action

[Morphine Prince 109,687]

PHOENIX (AP)  An Arizona sheriff who has often clashed with the federal government over the enforcement of immigration laws has filed a lawsuit to stop new policies announced by President Barack Obama.

The suit filed Thursday in federal court in Washington on behalf of Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio contends Obama acted outside his constitutional authority by not going through Congress.

It asks the court to block the changes that include making an estimated 5 million immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally eligible for work permits and for protection from deportation.

Arpaio said he went to court on behalf of himself and all Americans.

"I am not seeking to myself enforce the immigration laws as this is the province of the federal government," he said in a statement. "Rather, I am seeking to have the president and the other defendants obey the U.S. Constitution."

The lawsuit said Obama was "hijacking" previous immigration regulation and law by changing the definition of key terms to "create a radically new and different regime of immigration law and regulation."

Arpaio's lawsuit was filed by Larry Klayman, a conservative activist and attorney who has filed hundreds of lawsuits against the federal government. He founded the government watchdog group Judicial Watch in 1994 and left the group in 2003.

Obama's administration previously stripped 100 of Arpaio's deputies of their powers to make federal immigration arrests and filed a pending lawsuit against the sheriff's office alleging racial profiling and other civil rights violations.

Arpaio, a frequent critic of the administration's deportation policies, has said the lawsuit against his office was a politically motivated attack by the administration aimed at courting Latino voters.

Arpaio's volunteer cold-case posse also has investigated the authenticity of Obama's birth certificate.

Obama laid out his executive actions during a prime-time television address Thursday.

His changes would mainly cover parents of U.S. citizens and of legal residents as long as the parents have been in the U.S. for five years or more.

Obama also changed enforcement priorities by emphasizing the deportation of new illegal arrivals and criminals.

Republicans in Congress have accused Obama of exceeding his authority by not going through Congress. In his televised speech, Obama said his hand was forced by congressional inaction to fix the broken immigration system.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/arizona-sheriff-sues-obama-over-immigration-change-165028447.html

[RAMROD 117,190]

OMGGG!! YAS, the messes, it begins.

[mcoop 628]

Joe Arpaio is a complete ass.

[SassySponge 245]

Arizona? Well there's your problem

[Morphine Prince 109,687]

OMGGG!! YAS, the messes, it begins.

Look at the new thread I just made after this one  

[Nemo 4,410]

This lawsuit will be dismissed for lack of standing. Also, Joe Arpaio and Larry Klayman have long histories of stupidity and evil. It's a disgrace to America that Arpaio is still in office.

[Jonna Lee 384]

nnnn they better not appeal when they lose or get dismissed, if this makes it to the supreme court... :smh:

[Bordeciel 323]

Obama seen as one of the worst american president: it begins.

[TheOriginalOne 11,604]

Of course it's from Arizona :spin:

[MahoganySnitch 67]

 

What a hoot!

[Luiz 4,253]

**** you joe aripaio and **** the constitution. that thing needs to be amended to death or just throw that over 200 year old crap out the window and lets start fresh.  

[xoxo cupcakke 4,781]

Ugh. Bug off you Arizona sheriff. You live in what used to be Mexico and you are defending a 200+ year old document which hasn't been amended since the the early 90s despite necessary amending for the causes of immigration, civil rights, women's rights, student's right, and congressional responsibilities and expectations. Like, STFU. You don't know nothing about the Constitution, son, so sit down and have a cup of that truth tea  :madge:    :reductive:

[Gagaloo911 12,959]

Well this lawsuit should last a week, maybe

[APPLAUSE4YOU 454]

The fact that people just want to send these people out shows me how shallow this country is and how pathetic we are when it comes to helping these people that see America as a safe ground for peace, prosperity, and sanctuary. They seek jobs, education, and protection from gang violence that is horrid in Mexico. Of course this jack ass from Arizona would challenge Obama on anything benefiting an illegal immigrant. Maybe if they had a better system to allow people to come here that was quicker and more efficient, we wouldn't have so many illegal immigrants to begin with.

[Nemo 4,410]

Obama seen as one of the worst american president: it begins.

Because of this? LOL no.

**** you joe aripaio and **** the constitution. that thing needs to be amended to death or just throw that over 200 year old crap out the window and lets start fresh.

Arpaio yes, the Constitution no.

I can't emphasize this enough: No matter how much lip service they like to give to it, the right wing in the U.S. does not stand for the Constitution, nor is it on their side, in the vast majority of cases. Don't let them claim it, as they also try to claim all other symbols of patriotism, and the very word "patriot", for themselves, and only for themselves. Don't believe it. Don't concede it. The Constitution is not a right-wing document. At the time it was written, it was the most progressive instrument of it kind ever, and most of it still holds up. It was a product of the Enlightenment, and perhaps the first explicitly secular constitution -- something which was radical at the time, and understood as radical by the Founders.

Of course, it's also true that the Constitution is not sacred, nor perfect -- which the Founders knew very well, which is why it includes mechanisms for its own amending. Nor were the Founders saints, that we should seek to emulate their goals. But neither should we throw out the baby with the bathwater. The Constitution has brought us this far.