INVASION USA

Support swelling for Arizona crackdown on illegal aliens

'It's clear the federal government is shirking its responsibilities'

Posted: July 31, 2010
1:00 am Eastern
© 2010 WorldNetDaily

Support for Arizona's effort to crack down on illegal aliens is growing, even as a controversial law heads to the judges of the liberal 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for review.

U.S. District Court Judge Susan Bolton, appointed by President Clinton, this week suspended key parts of the law, which went into effect yesterday. Arizona, under Gov. Jan Brewer, already yesterday submitted the case to the appellate court for review.

The case is expected ultimately to be resolved by the U.S. Supreme Court.

National support continues to grow for the law, which is designed to make up for a lack of federal enforcement of immigration laws by giving more authority to state officials.

"This is a matter of America's sovereignty and security, and every patriotic American must get involved," said Richard Thompson, who heads the Thomas More Law Center. http://www.thomasmore.org/

The organization, a national, public-interest law firm in Michigan, said it is filing a brief in support of Arizona's law.

"If we can't defend our borders from attack by illegal immigrants, in time we will lose our country," Thompson said. "What confidence should we have in an attorney general who, without even reading the law, accused Arizona of racial profiling? Patriotic Americans must show they stand with Arizona in this matter."

He said the state has a "right to protect the safety of its citizens and prevent the massive economic damage being done to its institutions by illegal immigrants who have no right to be in our country in the first place. It's clear that the federal government is shirking its responsibilities to enforce the law for political reasons.

"So the legal issue becomes whether Arizona can step in and do the job with state laws consistent with federal law, or whether federal law has totally preempted the ability of Arizona to act," he said.

Arizona has appealed to the federal appeals court in San Francisco. It is expected, if an expedited schedule is followed, arguments could be heard as early as September.

An activist group battling illegal immigration called for citizens to remain "calm" after Bolton's ruling gutted Arizona's law intended to defend citizens from illegal aliens – a decision a key member of Congress called "beyond absurd." http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=184985

Those applauding Bolton included the Mexican government, which had complained to Congress about the law, which made it a crime to be illegally in the U.S.

Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., a member of the House Judiciary Committee and the ranking member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, said the ruling fails the logic test.

"The federal government has a right and a responsibility to enforce existing laws, but when they fail to meet that responsibility, we should not stand in the way of the states that take action to respond to the very real threat of border violence, drug cartels and human smuggling," he said. "The people who live under the constant threat of border violence have every right to be protected and have every right to defend themselves, their families and their communities." He said the ruling was "beyond absurd."

It was the Americans for Legal Immigration PAC that pleaded for calm.

According to a prepared statement signed by William Gheen, its president, "There is a sense of extreme anger sweeping America today, in reaction to the news that Obama and U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton thwarted democracy in America. We are appealing to Americans to remain calm and to channel that anger into sweeping politicians, business leaders and special-interest groups that support comprehensive immigration reform out of power in the elections."

The American Center for Law and Justice said the ruling was "extremely disappointing."

The organization had filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the case on behalf of 81 members of Congress in support of the state's effort.

"It is unfortunate that this court blocked key portions of Arizona's immigration law S.B. 1070 and failed to permit it to take effect in its entirety," said Jay Sekulow, chief counsel for the organization. "We believe the federal district court got it wrong and in its complex ruling has made it even more difficult for Arizona to protect and defend its borders. We believe Arizona's law complements federal law and remain hopeful that the appeals process will ultimately produce a decision that underscores the fact that Arizona has a constitutional right to protect its citizens and defend its borders. This decision marks the beginning of a lengthy legal process that will have tremendous ramifications nationwide."

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