Governor lashes out at feds for possible SB 1070 suit

The U.S. Department of Justice won't say whether it has decided to sue Arizona over its tough new immigration law, but according to Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, a legal case is already a done deal.

Clinton made the assertion in an interview with an Ecuadorian television station that was taped on June 8. The remarks made their way into the mainstream media and the blogosphere Thursday.

"President Obama has spoken out against the law because he thinks that the federal government should be determining immigration policy," Clinton said in the interview . "And the Justice Department, under his direction, will be bringing a lawsuit against the act."

The Justice Department declined to confirm Clinton's statements on Thursday, saying only that "the department continues to review the law."

But Brewer released a strongly worded statement in which she said she was blindsided by the possibility of a suit, and said it was "outrageous" that she had to find out about it via a television news interview.

Brewer met with President Barack Obama in the Oval Office earlier this month and asked about the possibility of a suit. The president declined to discuss the matter during that meeting, which covered a range of immigration-related issues - saying it was an issue for the Justice Department.

"This is no way to treat the people of Arizona," Brewer said in the statement. "If our own government intends to sue our state to prevent illegal immigration enforcement, the least it can do is inform us before it informs the citizens of another nation."

Senate Bill 1070 is already the subject of five federal lawsuits and has led to widespread boycotts against Arizona and its businesses, despite multiple polls that have indicated a majority of Americans support the law.

The measure states that an officer engaged in a lawful stop, detention or arrest shall, when practicable, ask about a person's legal status when reasonable suspicion exists that the person is in the U.S. illegally.

The law is set to take effect July 29.

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