Govt Asks Justices To Stay Out Of Immigration Case

WASHINGTON -- The Justice Department on Thursday urged the Supreme Court to stay out of a lawsuit involving Arizona's immigration law, saying lower courts properly blocked tough provisions targeting illegal immigrants.

The state law is a challenge to federal policy and is designed to establish Arizona's own immigration policy, the department's solicitor general said in a filing with the justices. Arizona says the law is an effort to cooperate with the federal government.

One provision requires that police, while enforcing other laws, question a person's immigration status if officers suspect they are in the country illegally. In April, a three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco upheld a federal judge's ruling halting enforcement of that and other key provisions in the Arizona law.

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer is seeking to overturn the judge's decision and wants Supreme Court review of the case, arguing that the issues are of compelling, nationwide importance.

The Justice Department disagreed.

"That several states have recently adopted new laws in this important area is not a sufficient reason for this court to grant review" of the first appeals court decision affirming a judge's preliminary ruling against part of one of those state laws, Justice told the high court.

The Arizona law has been followed by others, including Alabama, where lawmakers enacted a requirement that schools check students' immigration status. That provision has been blocked temporarily.

The Justice Department, about 30 civil rights organizations and prominent church leaders are challenging Alabama's law. Still standing there are provisions that allow police to check a person's immigration status during traffic stops and make it a felony for illegal immigrants to conduct basic state business, like getting a driver's license.

Last week, the federal government sued South Carolina in an effort to stop the state's tough new immigration law. The South Carolina law requires that officers call federal immigration officials if they suspect someone is in the country illegally following a traffic stop for something else.

Comments

[rparis8241]

11:40 AM on 11/26/2011

Old lady bigot

[Walrus Man]

04:44 PM on 11/14/2011

Is it true that she (Jan Brewer) has a shar-pei?

[ssf1183]

09:47 PM on 11/14/2011

Is it true you're a walrus?

[Jetwash]

01:47 PM on 11/14/2011

Brewer used the immigration issues to get herself elected while raising taxes, anyone remember that? No. Everyone is too focused on their own vitriol when it comes to immigration to even look at this politician and what she has done or hasn't done for her state. It's called distraction politics and it has worked. Look at her record and so called accomplishments to get the full story. Immigration is a small issue when taken all together. Only 11 million people here without papers. So what. We're a country of 300 million. That's less than 4 percent of the overall population, yet it dominates the headlines. Why? Fear.

[whistlerc42]

04:57 PM on 11/14/2011

jetwash: your understanding of the reason for opposition to illegal immigration is as faulty as you lack of understanding of the impact of illegal immigration on this nation. you say it dominates headlines for "fear". you are 100% wrong.it has to do with respect for law.. you also miss the number of illegals. the commonly accepted figure is 12 million, but if the govmt admits 12million you can bet it's probably 18 million. whatever the number that represents many millions buying gas and food running up cost for "legals". it represents millions filling emergency rooms at tax payer costs, polluting air driving older "dirtier" cars. 17 bolsheviks were smuggled into russia for the communist take over.there are about 10 times as many illegals as members of the US military. these illegals are still waving foreign flags not US flag,and are trying to change america instead of blending in as every other immigrant group has done.

[Razpooten]

09:25 PM on 11/14/2011

Actually you are just parroting what you hear around the trailer park. get real, there is no room for bigots and xenophobes here.

[ssf1183]

05:40 PM on 11/14/2011

Without papers? Isn't that ...... ILLEGAL?

[Razpooten]

07:10 PM on 11/14/2011

It has been establishe they are "illegal".
The SS number (card) is neither an ID nor a permit to work; it is an account numbe to which you pay in. If you are lucky when you are old you might get some of that back.
The IRS does not care which or whose number you use as long as you pay into the account. They also issue a Tax Payre I D number.
Last year, the IRS reported $4.2 billion in refunds to undocumented workers (yes we have not forgottten they are undocumented or illegal) Try to define the word "refund." because I know some of you will be confused. They were not given anything, they were refunded. BTW - is only a small percentage of what they paid in.

[hoochie-coochie]

01:36 PM on 11/14/2011

Note to Jan: Sunblock.

[ssf1183]

05:41 PM on 11/14/2011

The sun in Arizona is a bit harsh.

[Razpooten]

09:25 PM on 11/14/2011

way too late.

[kirazmazzone]

10:43 AM on 11/14/2011

Little Miss Dictator

[rubbercow]

08:54 PM on 11/14/2011

And you are a moderator?

[bldr1bob]

08:41 AM on 11/15/2011

Boy, I'll bet yout mom's proud............

[devildog0311usmc]

08:04 PM on 11/13/2011

HISPANIC GUY--DEMOCRAT CONSIDERING VOTING FOR RODNEY ...

[Contact1972]

01:18 AM on 11/14/2011

Rodney?

[Garspies]

02:23 PM on 11/14/2011

Rodney King?
Rodney Dangerfield?
Ain't democracy great? Even you get to vote.

[devildog0311usmc]

08:01 PM on 11/13/2011

I'M A HISPANIC GUY----OBAMA IS NOT ENFORCING THE IMMIGRATIONS, BUT THEY DON'T LIKE IT WHEN A STATE DOES THE JOB...FORCING TAX PAYERS TO PAY HEALTHCARE COST FOR ILLEGALS IS WRONG AND NOT FAIR....I VOTED FOR OBAMA, BUT NOT AGAIN..OBAMA LOVES ILLEGALS MORE THAN U.S. CITIZEN'S..

[ForVivi]

08:47 PM on 11/13/2011

No grites.

[dpaler4]

12:11 AM on 11/14/2011

Very well stated!

[Razpooten]

01:10 PM on 11/13/2011

Pee Yost, from the outset your juournalism veracity is in question when you use the term "illegal aliens;" that is a term used by xenophobic rednecks.
Being in the US withoug doucuments has been criminalized. There fore they have committed something illegal. The people that hire them are also doning something illegal. Based on that logic, the US citizen employers are also "illegals."

[RobietheCat]

05:14 PM on 11/13/2011

Illegal is a legal term the govt uses.

[Razpooten]

05:27 PM on 11/13/2011

Wrong answer.

[dpaler4]

12:19 AM on 11/14/2011

They are illegal, their employers are illegal and their children are illegal. Did that clarify everything?

[Razpooten]

09:26 PM on 11/14/2011

Got it, everybody is illegal. what are you nine?

[alpina]

01:00 PM on 11/13/2011

So, let me get this straight. The DOJ and Obama administration are running all over the country suing states for doing the job they are refusing to do, even though its the law. The only legal leg they have to stand on is jurisdiction and since they are negligent in the performance of their duties, a case can be made for usurping federal authority at the state level.

So in addition to actively impeding the enforcement of laws approved by the voters of the state, they also don't want to follow the rule of law and precedent and permit the appeals process to go to a higher court? Once again, Obama / Holder are taking a page out of the Bush / Rove play book and making up the rules as they go along to suit their own agenda.

If the DOJ thought they had a good case, why wouldn't they want it to go to the supreme court? This is a travesty of justice and a criminal violation of federal immigration policy that prohibits aiding and abetting of illegal aliens.

[devildog0311usmc]

08:03 PM on 11/13/2011

I HOPE THE SUPREME COURT OVER RULE OBAMA...IN FAVOR OF ARIZONA.

[LeftLeanWing]

12:40 AM on 11/14/2011

then you are Hoping in Vain.....

the constitution explicit states that Immigration issues are exclusively the domain of the Federal Government.....

But I'm hoping you fools keep on being so Vocal against Latinos....

Even the Legal Ones are upset because the one's you are going after ARE IN THEIR FAMILIES......

The Nation's Demographic is Rapidly Changing....
And you Dumb@ssGopers are angering the Demographic that is growing the fastest....  and you make them all feel threaten...   except for the Cubans........

[Razpooten]

09:27 PM on 11/14/2011

Hope springs eternal.

[dpaler4]

12:22 AM on 11/14/2011

I pray that the Court tells Obama and DOJ that they are guilty of being idiots!

[georgeny]

12:49 PM on 11/13/2011

the feds establish categories of non-citizens, the state doesn't and the state is ultimately merely using established federal categories. I urge the feds to change policy. Arizona can't give out permanent resident status even if it wanted to (which I agree it does not want to).

I could accept the federal government argument much more easily if it were preceded by, for instance, repeal of "real id", and certain other laws (google real id and you'll see what I mean). Currently, the feds are making the states ask for birth certificates (good proof there) and social security cards for people to get drivers licenses; why can't the state then ask for a greencard. The feds placing burdens on the state to protect a group of people whom the feds have declared outlaws is a little counterintuitive.

[omobob]

12:40 PM on 11/13/2011

> The Justice Department on Thursday urged the Supreme Court to stay out of a lawsuit involving Arizona's immigration law, saying lower courts properly blocked tough provisions targeting illegal immigrants.

Enough is enough of Gov. Brewers bigoted and fearful attacks on the Hispanic Community of Arizona. Brewer has painted a target for law enforcement on the backs of legal US citizens in her quest to purge the state of Hispanic influences in the schools, politics and the legal system of Arizona.

[dpaler4]

12:28 AM on 11/14/2011

This Governor is implementing a law and all of it's components where voted on and approved by the citizens of tat state. All individuals no matter their age or their nationality needs to be prosecuted and removed form this soil. There are means to enter this country and steps that need to be taken before they are sworn in. My ancestors and the majority of this countries citizens did the same thing. Why being from Mexico make them special?

[omobob]

12:05 PM on 11/14/2011

> Why being from Mexico make them special?

Its called equal protection and due process guaranteed to all US citizens and anyone arrested on US soil regardless of their nationality, Thats called the Miranda Act. Gov. Brewer has placed every legal Hispanic citizen in Arizona under the suspicion of violating immigration laws simply because of the color of their skin. ( some thing white folks ion this country will never understand ) Gov. Brewer’s actions are wholly discriminatory based not on the law but basede on fear and retribution.

[whistlerc42]

05:25 PM on 11/14/2011

omobob:"bigoted" and "fearful" are words that haters use when they dont have a leg to stand on hoping to scare people off their position. arizona has not attacked the hispanic community, they have attacked illegal immigrants. the border patrol has reported "illegals" from many countries including china, and several middle east countries. there have been drug smugglers, terrorists, and gun smugglers. another problem no one is talking about is disease, tuberculosis for instance.the reason we have laws regarding immigration is to protect the citizens from importing diseases and criminals. you are either thoughtless or have an "axe to grind".

[omobob]

06:08 PM on 11/14/2011

The Arizona law discriminates against legal Hispanic US Citizens merely because of the color of their skin. Its called profiling, its un American(equal protection) and against the law. Gov. Brewer has painted a target of suspicion on the backs of every Hispanic citizen of Arizona. Gov.. Brewer removed the popular Hispanic Cultural Studies calling them treasonous and seditious. A clear attack on Hispanic Community of Arizona, calling the study of their own history as treason. Of course, European History is still mandatory. Gov. Brewer operates from a base of fear and discrimination. Nothing she has done has helped the legal Hispanic Community of Arizona. She has only raised their misery index.

[Van The Man]

12:13 PM on 11/13/2011

Hilariously hypocritical. So the Obama department of justice wants the Supreme Court to "stay out" of the issue of reconciling the different and contradictory rulings of the various federal circuit court rulings.

Thus creating the very "patchwork" of laws existing is the various circuit court jurisdictions where the laws apply--and which Obama, Napolitano, Holder, etc decried would be antithetical to a cohesive and uniform immigration policy.

And then we have Obama's back-door Amnesty by executive fiat as well.

[alpina]

01:03 PM on 11/13/2011

BINGO!!!!

[JB frm NC]

01:45 PM on 11/14/2011

No. You don't. There is no "amnesty". I understand that people on your side are always in a panic about their backdoor, for some reason, but there is no amnesty--backdoor or otherwise.

If you are referring to the Morton Memo as "amnesty", you know nothing about either. Director Morton clarified last summer the prioritization policies that have been in place since the 1960s. The controversy of allowing John Lennon, a immigrant convicted of drug possession, to remain in this county stemmed from voiding the customary high priority given to deporting people with drug convictions. He would never be allowed to remain under policies outlined in the Morton Memo.

But thanks for playing. You can return to your regularly scheduled delusion now.

[whistlerc42]

05:30 PM on 11/14/2011

JB frm NC: you just lost whatever game you are playing. in 1986, as a result of a large illegal immigration problem, congress passed a law giving amnesty to approx 7.5 illegals with the promise to stop illegals and also penalize business and industry that hired them. well, the amnesty went through but the penalties were never enforced. the liberals will pass an amnesty for the current crowd if they ever get enough people in congress to do so. that will be at least 20 million illegal "citizens" since 1986

[dpaler4]

11:50 AM on 11/13/2011

WOW, how arrogant is this administration? The Supreme Court is not to be controlled by any branch of this government. This administration knows that it's fight against those states protecting it's citizens and boarders at their citizens wish is because of it's choice not to enforce a standing law. The states have chosen to do what the feds have chosen to turn it's back on, protecting this country and it's citizens. I pray that the Supreme Court does not listen and makes a ruling in favor of state rights.

[Razpooten]

01:15 PM on 11/13/2011

Who is this Rick Perry?

[dpaler4]

02:50 PM on 11/13/2011

NO, I am an American who served this country and do not listen to the party line bull. I am smart enough to see what is going on and able to think for myself so that my statements have solid ground to stand on.

[Tim The Enchanter]

12:36 AM on 11/13/2011

Obama's justice department needs to go to Constitution Class, where they might explain that immigration is not even remotely a delegated power of the federal government. The Framers actually WANTED free, easy immigration to the colonies and knowing full well the difference, elected only to give the Feds the power to create a uniform set of standards for becoming a citizen once you moved here. And it was done, not to make becoming a citizen harder, but to make it EASIER and without massive state to state differences and ensure full recognition of citizenship throughout all states.

For this reason, while the Feds can make it difficult for you to become a citizen, they have no power to tell a state that it may not, nor that it must, accept immigrants from another country, nor to interfer in their local immigration laws, as long as it doesn't conflict with the process of becoming a citizen.

Does Obama even know what the Constitution is?

[dpaler4]

11:58 AM on 11/13/2011

Obama believes that he has been ordained to convert this country from one of freedom and democracy to one in which our workforce is so diluted that big business could offer a $5.00 per hour wage and we would have no choice to to say thank you. The Supreme Court is not under the control of any branch of the government and this administration needs to stay out of this request from a state to those who enforce the Constitution. If the court abides by the request of the administration we need to take to the streets and take our country back!

[georgeny]

12:53 PM on 11/13/2011

Well put and totally correct. No one will be able to argue against you so prepare to be called racist, etc. Immigration is an enumerated power and the state is just using federally created categories. Let the feds change the categories.

And you're right about bho and the constitution. If his is the level of knowledge of a "senior lecturer" on constitutional law at UChicago, we're all a little doomed.

[whistlerc42]

05:36 PM on 11/14/2011

georgeny: according to what i have been able to research, obama was not a professor nor specialist on the constitution although he did "lecture". regardless of what he knows and doesnt know, he surely has run over the constitution and abused presidential powers since taking office.