Posted on 12/26/2014 11:50:52 AM PST by SeekAndFind
A bummer from D.C., especially coming so soon after a federal judge in Pennsylvania held that the amnesty was unconstitutional. Don’t fret, though. A similar lawsuit, led by incoming Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and joined by 24 different states, has already been filed in Texas with a hearing scheduled early next month. The judge in that case is a Bush appointee who’s been critical of Obama’s DHS on immigration in the past. I like those odds. Worry about losing that one, not this one, as all it’ll take is a circuit split to force this issue before the Supreme Court.
The judge in the D.C. case? An Obama appointee, of course.
Judge Howell said … that Congress has the job of setting immigration enforcement priorities and can tell the president to knock it off — if lawmakers can get a bill passed.
“Should Congress disagree with the enforcement priorities set out by DHS in the challenged policies, Congress has the ability to appropriate funds solely for removal, and the president cannot refuse to expend funds appropriated by Congress,” she wrote in her 33-page opinion, which denied Sheriff Arpaio’s request for an injunction halting the amnesty and instead threw out the lawsuit, acceding to the Obama administration’s wishes…
Judge Howell accepted the administration’s argument that the nearly 5 million applicants would be screened on a “case-by-case” basis, which she said meant it was a use of discretion, not a rewrite of the law.
Even the Obama appointee acknowledges the new Republican Congress’s ability to tie O’s hands on this, assuming they’re willing to go to the mat and force him to sign a bill with funding limitations on amnesty. As for the rest of the decision, here’s the full opinion, most of which focuses on standing. That’s a perennial legal problem for opponents of Obama’s power grabs, like suspending the employer mandate — because O’s executive actions (so far) have tended to lift legal burdens from classes of people rather than impose new ones, it’s hard for a critic-turned-plaintiff to show that he’s suffered some concrete injury from the new policy. “But he’s violating the Constitution by making law unilaterally!” isn’t concrete enough, at least according to Judge Howell. If courts conferred standing on everyone who disagreed in the abstract with a president’s interpretation of his own power, they’d be bogged down with thousands of lawsuits from partisans on the other side every time he signs something. Is it true, though, that Arpaio’s suffered no concrete injury from Obama’s new amnesty? This passage from Howell made me laugh:
If you think this isn’t going to create an incentive for more illegals to make a run for the border, you’re kidding yourself. Even if the White House sticks to the cut-off date restricting it to people who were already here by January 2010, the policy will inevitably be twisted through word of mouth and coyote propaganda to convince people in Mexico and beyond that the amnesty is ongoing. Just follow the timeline on this past summer’s border crisis to see what I mean. When, not if, there’s a new surge in illegal immigration thanks to O’s new policy (which is a feature, not a bug, for Democrats eager to import more left-leaning potential voters, of course), Arpaio will be forced to deal with it in his official capacity as sheriff. You can argue that that’s not enough for him to win his suit — if it is, it would in theory allow the states to dictate policy to the feds in court based on how inconvenienced they are by it — but let’s not be cute and pretend that the “magnet” effect is a phantom of everyone’s imagination.
The other key question here: Is Obama really exercising prosecutorial “discretion” in laying down a policy that’ll cover five million people?
If effectively legalizing five million people is “reflective of congressionally-directed priorities” now (wouldn’t Congress have literally directed that priority by passing a new law if it wanted a policy that broad?), it won’t be 10 days from now when the new Congress was sworn in. Either way, though, Howell’s logic does nothing to counter the hypothetical I’ve been using over the past month to show liberals how this precedent can be used against them. If President Cruz directs the IRS not to collect more than 10 percent of American taxpayers’ adjusted gross income, is that policy legal so long as he allows the agency “discretion” to apply the statutory tax brackets in select cases where an individual taxpayer doesn’t deserve the lower rate (e.g., if he’s underpaid his taxes in a previous year)? I’ll bet Cruz could live with that. Can lefties?
the administration’s argument that the nearly 5 million applicants would be screened on a “case-by-case” basis
If it’s Executive discretion, then Obama should have to
personally screen EACH AND EVERY case!!!
.
American Patriots and Friends ...
Can you take a moment out of a busy Christmas holiday season and help promote this series of national rallies on 2015-01-03 ?
Momentum is building “nationally” for the rallies, and it’s already scheduled for at least one radio interview on Monday.
Go outside Facebook to invite your friends and local Tea Party folks to participate. Forward this message to your local conservative radio talk show hosts.
As Ronald Reagan said ... “It’s amazing what can be accomplished when No One’s interested in getting the credit.”
As you’ll see below, I’m not asking for any $$$ financial donations. Ever.
I’m also “clean” with absolutely “zero” arrests-changes, and a former U.S. top secret clearance.
Douglas Coggeshall (Tampa, FL)
Stop-Obama-Amnesty@Engineering-Excellence.US
RSVP at the Facebook event “Obama Amnesty — National Protest : 2015-01-03”
http://i916.photobucket.com/albums/ad8/Coggeshall1955/FB-1227-61_zps3a35c225.jpg
.
2015-01-03 National Rally Goals:
1) Speak DEFIANCE against Obama’s Illegal Amnesty !
2) FIRE Speaker John Boehner by encouraging House GOP to select Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) as the next House Speaker.
3) Tell the GOPe-RINO gang (Juan McCain, Karl Rove, Reince Priebus, Jeb Bush) that we WILL NOT TOLERATE their pathetic political surrender to Obama’s clear agenda to DESTROY our AMERICAN REPUBLIC.
4) Express our Patriots’ DEFIANT OUTRAGE ... in the face of BITTER COLD WINTER, just as Generals Washington and Patton won GREAT victories at Trenton (Christmas 1776) and Bastogne (Battle of the Bulge, Christmas 1944).
On Saturday Jan. 3, 2015 ... we will ALL STAND DEFIANT in the BRAVE tradition of American Patriots before us ... our fathers and grandfathers ... at Valley Forge, Yorktown, the Battle of New Orleans, San Juan Hill, Belleau Wood, Midway, Omaha Beach, Iwo Jima, Chosin Reservoir, Battle of Ia Drang, and Battle of 73 Easting.
Share with ALL Patriot Friends and Tea Party groups ... WHY ?
Ted Cruz, Jeff Sessions, Mike Lee, Trey Gowdy (et al) GREATLY appreciate our support ...
A great Patriot turn-out encourages the Senate and House GOP to FIRE the Machiavellian traitors John Boehner and Mitch McConnell ...
RSVP at the Facebook event “Obama Amnesty — National Protest : 2015-01-03”
You’re encouraged to send Rally photographs to “Stop-Obama-Amnesty@Engineering-Excellence.US” where they will be posted (in collage form) at the Free Republic website (you’ll be provided the internet link).
Follow this link (below) to download Hertiage Foundation Report (PDF) on $$$ Trillion-dollar Illegal Amnesty Cost
http://thf_media.s3.amazonaws.com/2013/pdf/sr133.pdf
Step out — be COURAGEOUS ... Organize your own LOCAL Rally !
1) Select your location (primary and secondary)
2) Continue recruiting team members for rally NEXT Saturday.
3) Encourage your local Tea Party chapters to join your team.
Rally Team Planning Tips : Team Assignments (Very Important !)
1) Sign Coordinator
2) Security (Two Persons taking Pictures / Videos of the Team Protest)
This includes one person on the group’s perimeter in case the wrong people approach and try to disrupt your rally team.
3) Hot Coffee & Doughnuts Coordinator (it’ll be COLD that day)
4) Transportation for Team members with special needs
5) Vehicle Parking Coordinator (locates safe parking)
6) Special Events Person (the “Runner” for unexpected actions)
7) Communications Coordinator : Press Spokesman & inviting others such as Tea Party groups
8) Team Protection Coordinator : Primarily to keep the “Violent” and “Crazies” away
9) Prayer Leader : Your Patriotic Protest Team will absolutely need The LORD’s blessing and protection !
Douglas Coggeshall ... Aerospace Mechanical Engineer
Stop-Obama-Amnesty@Engineering-Excellence.US
Financial $$$ donations NOT accepted or solicited !
You’re asked to share this event (Inside/Outside Facebook).
Godspeed to You, Everyone ...
.
Already quickly appealed,
- - - - -
“Having reviewed carefully Judge Beryl Howell’s ruling, Klayman, Arpaio’s lawyer, had this to say:
“Judge Howell is clearly wrong in her reasoning and we wasted no time in taking an appeal – only 20 minutes after the ruling was issued. While I respect the judge, she clearly was influenced by her politics, which is pro-Obama. There is no justifiable basis for her decision and I am confident that it will be overturned on appeal – an appeal which is likely to wind up at the Supreme Court. Notwithstanding that the case does present serious questions about the constitutionality of the president’s admittedly “emperor-like actions,” the Sheriff’s office on behalf of the people of Maricopa County do have standing, since they are have already been and continue to be injured by these illegal executive actions.
As just one example presented to the court by the Sheriff, criminals who are illegal aliens are being released back onto the streets by Obama’s Department of Homeland Security, as a result of Obama’s amnesty, and they frequently commit new crimes and wind up back in jail, at great expense to the Sheriff’s office. This is clear harm, but the judge chose to downplay it – even though it costs the people of Maricopa County millions of dollars to jail these criminals who should otherwise be deported. In short, we are confident that her ruling will soon be overturned and that this case will proceed to enjoin the president’s illegal and unconstitutional actions. President Obama’s early Christmas present will have to be given back to the American people, who deserve better during this sacred holiday season.” “
The U.S. Judiciary is part of the Praetorian Guard.
Her rationalization of the mass use of “prosecutorial discretion” as being no different then an individual prosecutor deciding whether to pursue a case is hilarious.
Really? Millions are to be examined with a pre determined result - no enforcement, unless some compelling reason to enforce?
Sorta stands the law on its head, right? Isnt it the other way around?
Makes the law completely meaningless, as she interprets it to mean that “you can stay, unless we have a really really good reason to make you leave”.
The whole point of immigration laws is to prevent staying without permission. The Obama memos invert it to put the burdn on the government to prove why they should enforce the law.
Don’t you just love her perma-scowl.
The judge in the D.C. case? An Obama appointee, of course.
If you think this isn’t going to create an incentive for more illegals to make a run for the border, you’re kidding yourself.
TM Ping.
The entire battle has been lost for patriots . These activist judges are the end of everything. As long as they can get away with it then it is over.
We are down to one last box.
Second try on photo.
“Should Congress disagree with the enforcement priorities set out by DHS in the challenged policies, Congress has the ability to appropriate funds solely for removal, and the president cannot refuse to expend funds appropriated by Congress,”
Which the author duplicitously recast as: “Even the Obama appointee acknowledges the new Republican Congress’s ability to tie O’s hands on this, assuming they’re willing to go to the mat and force him to sign a bill with funding limitations on amnesty.”
LOL!
The judge is right however. Obama’s actions can be stopped by simply authorizing enough funds for removal- which the GOPe refuse to do!
ANY odumbo appointee will never support any law suit against the odumbo amnesty plan. Now that a BUSH appointed judge is deciding, perhaps, just perhaps things will be brought to a head. Deciding what is right or wrong is no longer a matter of law, its those who DECIDE what is right or wrong. (Its not the votes that decide, its the one who counts the votes that decides.)
It is simple—do NOT recognize federal law!! Make amnesty illegal in your own state!
Is there anything in federal law that requires the states to enforce those federal laws?
I am thinking bout everything from federal restrictions on
guns, counterfeiting, drugs, alcohol, etc.
(not even to mention the myriad of other federal laws re:
how much water my toilet and washing machine uses,
or vehicle emissions, or pulling the tag off my mattress, etc.)
Unless also prohibited by a mirroring state law,
is there anything in federal law that requires the states to enforce those laws?
Could state and local jurisdictions simply refuse to enforce them?
Serious question.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
