17 states sue Obama over immigration action

He may have been applauded by millions of undocumented immigrants in America for his boldness to pass executive orders on immigration, but 17 states are coming together to rain on President Obama’s parade.

Texas, Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, West Virginia, and Wisconsin – all are suing to stop President Obama’s executive action on immigration.

It comes about two weeks after the president announced the action, which includes stopping deportations for parents of US citizens.

“That the executive order issued by the president, as well as the order issued by the federal agencies to fulfill the president’s executive order, are illegal,” said Greg Abbott, Texas Attorney General.

Filipino-American Attorney General Sean Reyes says the lawsuit is not about immigration but whether he bypassed Congress and executive authority.

“The process is what is being challenged,” said Atty. Reyes. “The president, regardless of the political party, must respect the rule of law and a balance of powers.”

Meantime, the House is set to vote on a Republican-sponsored bill to undo President Obama’s executive order on immigration.

It would be a largely symbolic vote by the GOP-led House. It would have little chance of passing the Senate, which is controlled by the Democrats.

“The House will make clear today that we are rejecting his unilateral actions,” said House Speaker John Boehner, “and then the United States Senate should take this bill and pass it.”

But the other leadership in the House urge Boehner and other Republicans to honor the president’s executive authority to take action, and instead focus on passing a comprehensive immigration reform bill.

“There’s 11 million people in need of having their documentation put in order,” said Rep. Nancy Pelosi. “There are 11,000 – 1,100 who have been deported on some days of the week. There is one person standing in the way and that is the Speaker of the House.”

For his part, President Obama maintains he will veto any attempt by the GOP to stop his new immigration actions.

The White House says what the Republicans are doing not only nullifies and blocks the implementation of these executive actions, they also have devastating consequences which include the separation of families.

All but two of the states that are suing President Obama on his executive orders on immigration have Republican governors.

It’s also interesting to note that a poll just released by the Public Religion Research Institute shows that Americans are split at whether Obama should be using executive action – but they overwhelmingly support the action’s goals.