Arizona residents to vote on whether local police can arrest illegal aliens who cross unlawfully



On Tuesday, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled that a proposal that would make crossing the Arizona-Mexico border unlawfully a state crime will appear on the upcoming November ballot for residents.

The Arizona Immigration and Border Law Enforcement Measure, Proposition 314, would allow state and local police officers to arrest and detain illegal aliens who have crossed into the United States in between ports of entry. It would also empower judges to order deportations.

'Like the Texas bill, only stronger.'

Additionally, it would make it a Class 2 felony — punishable by up to 10 years behind bars — to sell fentanyl to an individual that results in their death.

If voters pass the proposal on November 5, the E-Verify program would be required to determine an individual's citizenship status before enrolling in financial aid or public welfare programs. Individuals who provide false information or fraudulent documents to an employer or use them to apply for public benefits could be charged with a Class 6 felony.

Opponents attempted to block the proposal from appearing on the ballot, arguing that it is unrelated to immigration enforcement, the fentanyl problem, and public benefit regulations. However, a lower court rejected those claims.

Critics of the measures also contended that the proposal covers more than one subject, but Arizona Supreme Court Chief Justice Ann A. Scott Timmer disagreed, stating that it conforms to the single-subject rule, the Associated Press reported.

Arizona Proposition 314 is similar to Texas' Senate Bill 4, which was signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott in December but has since been tied up in the courts due to a legal challenge from the federal government. SB4, if allowed to go into effect, would permit state and local law enforcement officers to arrest, detain, prosecute, and deport illegal aliens.

Arizona State Senator Justine Wadsack (R) stated that Proposition 314 “is like the Texas bill, only stronger.”

Since Texas introduced the legislation, and despite the legal challenges from the Biden-Harris administration, several states, including Oklahoma, Iowa, and Louisiana, have attempted to pass similar measures.

The federal government also lodged a lawsuit against Texas for installing concertina wire along the southern border to deter illegal crossings. Abbott stated that Texas has moved forward with installing additional razor wire barriers in Eagle Pass and El Paso.

"Operation Lone Star engineers install more razor wire near Shelby Park," Abbott said. "Texas will continue to hold the line and bolster our border security efforts to protect Texans—and Americans—from the Biden-Harris border crisis."

Meanwhile, Border Patrol agents in the El Paso sector have recently warned about an increase in attacks on agents. From October 2023 through August 9, 2024, the sector reported 66 assaults against Border Patrol officers.

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Iowa enacts law allowing police to arrest, deport some illegal immigrants



Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds (R) signed a bill into law on Wednesday that would allow state police to arrest and deport certain illegal immigrants.

The law, which goes into effect July 1, will make it an aggravated misdemeanor to be in Iowa if the individual has an outstanding deportation order or was previously removed from the country or prohibited from entering the country. Individuals charged with the offense could face up to two years in prison.

The charges are bumped up to a felony offense if the individual’s former deportation order was related to drug crimes, crimes against people, or if they have any felony convictions. Suspects may not be arrested at places of worship, schools, medical facilities, or facilities for sexual assault survivors, the legislation reads.

The Senate File 2340 states that a judge may choose to allow the immigrant to leave the country instead of facing charges.

Reynolds stated, “The Biden administration has failed to enforce our nation’s immigration laws, putting the protection and safety of Iowans at risk.”

“Those who come into our country illegally have broken the law, yet Biden refuses to deport them. This bill gives Iowa law enforcement the power to do what he is unwilling to do: enforce immigration laws already on the books,” Reynolds added.

State Senator Janice Weiner (D) criticized the bill, calling it “a political stunt and a false promise that doesn’t contain the needed resources,” the New York Times reported.

“It’s a gotcha bill,” Weiner claimed.

Mark Stringer, the executive director of the Iowa American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa, also spoke out against the legislation, stating, “The Iowa law enforcement and state judges tasked with authority to carry out this outrageous legislation are not trained in immigration law and have no proper authority to enforce it.”

Stringer claims the new law would encourage “racial profiling and stereotyping” while undermining “public safety and the rule of law.”

“It will consume already strapped state court and law enforcement resources,” he contended.

Stringer argued it is one of the “most extreme, discriminatory, and unconstitutional anti-immigrant bills” in the country.

State Representative Steven Holt (R), who supported the measure, called on states to act.

“Many other states are standing up to protect their sovereignty, and their citizens and Iowa must do the same,” Holt stated.

The legislation is similar to Texas’ Senate Bill 4, which is currently tied up in the court system following a lawsuit from the Biden administration’s Department of Justice.

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Louisiana GOP lawmakers advance bill similar to Texas' that would allow police to arrest, detain illegal immigrants



Louisiana Republican lawmakers advanced legislation on Monday that, if passed, would allow local and state police to arrest and detain illegal migrants, the Associated Press reported.

The Republican-majority state Senate passed Senate Bill 388 in a 28-11 vote with 14 co-authors, according to state Senator Valarie Hodges (R).

In a post on X, Hodges wrote, "Louisiana is one step closer to securing our border and addressing our illegal immigration crisis."

"It is imperative that, WE, as a State, protect our citizens in this time of invasion from the crime, drugs, and human trafficking that come with an open border," she stated in an earlier post.

Hodges told fellow lawmakers, "I know there are some people who have concerns about the bill, but what I'm mostly concerned about is about the people of Louisiana, what it's costing the state and what it's costing us in jobs, crime rate, and safety."

If the bill is passed, illegal migrants detained by local authorities could face up to a year in prison and $4,000 in fines. Those with more than one offense could serve two years in jail and pay $10,000 in fines.

Democratic state Senator Royce Duplessis and other critics of the legislation argued its legality, WVUE-DT reported.

"We just went through an entire crime session, and we are going to do all these things to deal with the issue of crime here in Louisiana, but now we are going to go beyond that and do the job of the federal government," Duplessis stated. "I don't think this bill will solve anything. I think all it's going to do is further a narrative."

The bill now heads to the state House of Representatives for discussion.

SB 388 "creates the crime of unlawful entry or reentry into the state of Louisiana by an alien," the proposed legislation reads.

Hodges and other supporters of the measure argue that the state has the "right to defend our nation."

The proposed bill is similar to Texas' Senate Bill 4, which was slated to take effect in March but is currently facing legal challenges presented by the Biden administration. The White House claims the measure "intrudes into a field that is occupied by the federal government" and "conflicts with various provisions of the [Immigration and Nationality Act]."

If Governor Greg Abbott's (R) office wins the legal battle, state and local law enforcement officers will be granted the authority to arrest, detain, prosecute, and deport illegal migrants.

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Was Texas' SB4 blocked to PRESERVE the Biden admin's partnership with cartels?



Texas immigration law SB4 gives the state power to secure the border and deport illegal immigrants to Mexico — since the federal government is refusing to do so.

While the Supreme Court allowed the law to remain in effect while the Biden administration challenges it, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals has decided to stop it.

“Yesterday, the Supreme Court said Texas can begin arresting, and then, I get up this morning and the appellate court says, ‘No, no, no, not so fast,’” Glenn Beck says to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

Paxton is completely floored by the decision.

“I’ve never seen anything like it; I don’t understand it,” Paxton tells Glenn, adding, “it’s bizarre.”

“What we have going on here is a whole lot of harm. We have crime, we have killers, we have just an invasion of our border,” Glenn says. “It should be that the court should say, ‘No, no, no, let them arrest until we look at everything. Instead, the harm that is being perceived, I guess by the court, is to the illegal alien.”

Paxton believes it's not just illegal immigrants who the court is afraid of harming.

“Yes, to the illegal aliens and to the Biden administration’s partnership with cartels, that’s the harm. We are harming the cartel relationship, and I don’t know how else to put it,” Paxton says.

“If the court defends this, if they block us from enforcing legitimate path law by the legislature signed by the governor, then they are saying, ‘We want to protect any harm that might come to the illegal immigrants and to the Biden administration’s work with the cartels,’” Paxton adds.


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Mexico allows millions of illegal aliens to flow northward but says it won't take deportees from Texas



It remains unclear whether the courts will ultimately permit the Lone Star State to assume some of the basic duties the Biden administration appears unwilling or at the very least incapable of doing — namely the enforcement of immigration law amid an unprecedented border crisis.

Regardless of how the battle over Texas' Senate Bill 4 pans out, Mexico underscored Tuesday that when it comes to the tens of millions of foreign nationals who have transited its lands in order to trespass into the U.S., there will be no take-backs.

Background

SB 4, ratified by Gov. Greg Abbott (R) on Dec. 18, was supposed to take effect this month. The law makes illegal entry into Texas a class B misdemeanor and allows for foreign nationals who refuse to leave the country to be charged with a second-degree felony, which carries prison time of up to 20 years.

Under SB 4, illegal aliens found in Texas "at any time" who have previously been convicted of two or more misdemeanors involving drugs, crimes against a person, or both, would be charged with a third-degree felony.

The law also grants local law enforcement officials with the ability to deport illegal aliens.

The Biden administration, which has overseen the unlawful entry of well over one million illegal aliens into the country since October, joined radical leftists groups and a foreign regime in condemning SB 4.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre called SB 4 "an extreme law that will not and does not make the communities in Texas safer."

The Biden Department of Justice sued Texas "to enforce the supremacy of federal law" in early January. The following month, a Texas federal judge placed a preliminary injunction on SB 4, claiming Texas "is unlikely to succeed on the merits."

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's office immediately appealed the ruling to the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, which reversed the ruling. This prompted the Biden administration to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, which temporarily blocked the law.

The Supreme Court allowed SB 4 to go into effect Tuesday, but this proved to be short-lived. Hours later, the federal appeals court let the lower court's earlier injunction stand.

Mexico: Solely an exporter of illegal aliens

Amid this back-and-forth — which University of Texas Austin law professor Steve Vladeck told the Texas Tribune was "indefensibly chaotic" — Mexican authorities chimed in, indicating they would remain an exporter, not an importer, of illegal aliens.

The Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement Tuesday, claiming the Mexican regime "condemns the entry into force of SB4 in Texas, which aims to stop the flow of migrants by criminalizing them, promoting the separation of families, discrimination and racial profiling that threaten the human rights of the migrant community."

Apparently, the ministry did not consider the possibility that migrant families could be reunited and live in Mexico.

The ministry further stated that the Mexican regime "categorically rejects any measure that allows state or local authorities to exercise immigration control, detain and return nationals or foreigners to Mexican territory."

"Mexico will not accept, under any circumstances, repatriations by the State of Texas," claimed the ministry.

Intimating that the border crisis, which it has in many ways exacerbated, is America's alone to deal with, the ministry accused Texas of "generating hostile environments" for millions of residents of Mexican origin and subjecting them to "expressions of hatred, discrimination and racial profiling."

Mexico, which has received billions of dollars in direct U.S. foreign assistance in recent years, further indicated it will attempt to put its thumb on the scale with regards to the Texas case before the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and "provide relevant information on the impact that this law will have on the Mexican and/or Mexican-American community, as well as its effect in U.S.-Mexico relations."

Mexico's top diplomat for North America reiterated the regime's rebuff of Texas' efforts to re-establish its sovereignty, writing, "Our country will not accept repatriations from the state of Texas. The dialogue on immigration matters will continue between the federal governments of [Mexico] and [the U.S.]."

In addition to pushing back against Texas' desperate effort to tackle a fatal and costly problem, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador wants the Biden administration to give legal status to at least five million illegal aliens in the U.S., reported the New York Times.

Obrador also has blasted proposals to build a wall along the southern border as "electoral propaganda."

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Supreme Court extends freeze on Texas law that would allow police to arrest, deport illegal migrants



The United States Supreme Court on Monday extended a freeze on Texas' new immigration law that would allow local police to arrest migrants who enter the country illegally, the New York Post reported.

Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito indefinitely extended the temporary hold on Texas' Senate Bill 4 while the court continues to evaluate the measure.

On Monday, Alito's order read, "It is ordered that the stay issued on March 4, 2024, is hereby extended pending further order of the undersigned or of the Court."

NEW: Supreme Court Justice Alito EXTENDED the stay on Texas' SB 4 law "pending further order of the undersigned or of the Court."
— (@)

Republican Governor Greg Abbott signed SB4 into law in December. The legislation would allow state and local law enforcement officers to arrest, detain, prosecute, and deport illegal migrants. In January, the Biden administration sued Texas over the law, claiming it "intrudes into a field that is occupied by the federal government" and "conflicts with various provisions of the [Immigration and Nationality Act]."

SB4 was slated to take effect in early March but was previously temporarily halted by the Supreme Court until March 18. The court's latest order places the law on hold indefinitely.

U.S. District Judge David Ezra granted an injunction in February, arguing that the state failed to prove the federal government has "abandoned" the border. He accused Texas officials of confusing "the figurative for the literal."

"Contrary to Texas's position, the record is replete with examples and evidence of the federal government carrying out its immigration duties," he claimed. "Texas may disagree with diplomatic efforts or contest their effectiveness, but it cannot maintain in good faith that those efforts constitute 'abandonment.'"

Texas appealed Ezra's ruling and affirmed its commitment to taking the battle to the Supreme Court.

"Texas will immediately appeal this decision, and we will not back down in our fight to protect our state — and our nation — from President Biden's border crisis," Abbott said at the time. "Texas has the right to defend itself because of President Biden's ongoing failure to fulfill his duty to protect our state from the invasion at our southern border."

The bill's coauthor, Senator Bryan Hughes (R), has stated that he is optimistic the court will ultimately side with Texas.

On Monday, Abbott addressed the court's latest extension of the block on X.

"SCOTUS temporarily halted enforcement of SB 4 but Texas is still using its authority to arrest illegal immigrants for criminal trespass and other violations of law," Abbott wrote. "We continue building the wall, use [National Guard] to erect razor wire barriers to repel migrants & buoys remain in river."

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Judge halts Texas law that would allow police to arrest, deport illegal immigrants — claims Biden hasn’t ‘abandoned’ border



A Texas federal judge on Thursday placed a preliminary injunction on a new Texas law that would allow local authorities to arrest and deport immigrants who enter the state illegally.

What's the background?

Senate Bill 4, signed into law in December by Republican Governor Greg Abbott, would make illegally crossing the southern border into Texas a class B misdemeanor. Local law enforcement officials would have the authority from the state to arrest, detain, prosecute, and even deport illegal immigrants. Individuals who refuse to leave could be charged with a second-degree felony and face up to 20 years in prison. Those caught smuggling illegal immigrants into the state could be sentenced to at least 10 years in prison.

Abbott hoped to address the state's immigrant crisis by "crack[ing] down on repeated attempts to enter Texas by creating the offense of illegal reentry and penalizes offenders," according to a December press release from his office. The governor accused the president of refusing to enforce the country's immigration laws and prompting an invasion.

Shortly after signing the bill, the Biden administration sued Texas, claiming the law "is preempted and violates the United States Constitution." The Department of Justice contended that Senate Bill 4 "intrudes into a field that is occupied by the federal government" and "conflicts with various provisions of the [Immigration and Nationality Act]."

Renae Eze, a spokesperson for Abbott, stated that the governor's administration is prepared to take the legal battle "all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court."

Judge blocks SB 4

U.S. District Judge David Ezra, appointed by former President Ronald Reagan, granted an injunction on Thursday, preventing the new law from taking effect while the case is being reviewed.

In Ezra's 114-page ruling, he rejected Texas' claims that the Biden administration has failed to enforce federal immigration laws.

"The Court is sympathetic to Texas's concerns at the border, but to say that the Biden Administration has 'abandoned' the field of immigration is to take hyperbolic criticism literally," he wrote. "Contrary to Texas's position, the record is replete with examples and evidence of the federal government carrying out its immigration duties."

"Texas may disagree with diplomatic efforts or contest their effectiveness, but it cannot maintain in good faith that those efforts constitute 'abandonment,'" Ezra declared, accusing Texas of confusing "the figurative for the literal."

The federal judge claimed that the state "is unlikely to succeed on the merits." Ezra claimed that if Texas wins the lawsuit and its new law is enforced, the federal government "will suffer grave irreparable harm."

"If allowed to proceed, SB 4 could open the door to each state passing its own version of immigration laws," he stated. "The effect would moot the uniform regulation of immigration throughout the country and force the federal government to navigate a patchwork of inconsistent regulations. SB 4 threatens the fundamental notion that the United States must regulate immigration with one voice."

Abbott responded to the judge's decision on Thursday, noting that the preliminary injunction "was fully expected."

"Texas will immediately appeal this decision, and we will not back down in our fight to protect our state—and our nation—from President Biden's border crisis. The President of the United States has a constitutional duty to enforce federal laws protecting States, including laws already on the books that mandate the detention of illegal immigrants. Texas has the right to defend itself because of President Biden's ongoing failure to fulfill his duty to protect our state from the invasion at our southern border. Even from the bench, this District Judge acknowledged that this case will ultimately be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court," Abbott stated.

Update: This ruling against #SB4 has been appealed to the Fifth Circuit by the State of Texas. #txlege
— (@)

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Georgia GOP Looks To Crack Down On Sheriffs, Jailers Who Shield Illegal Immigrants From ICE After Laken Riley Murder

Riley’s alleged killer was arrested by University of Georgia police

Biden DOJ sues Texas to kill law criminalizing illegal immigration



The Biden Department of Justice made good Wednesday on its threat to sue Texas for attempting to protect American sovereignty amidst an unprecedented flood of illegal aliens over the southern border. The lawsuit comes one day after the Biden administration requested that the Supreme Court allow federal agents to remove some of the Lone Star State's more effective border defenses.

The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, claims the efforts of the Republican-led state to do what the Biden administration appears unwilling or unable to do as it regards the border "through [Senate Bill 4], intrude on the federal government's exclusive authority to regulate the entry and removal of noncitizens, frustrate the United States' immigration operations and proceedings, and interfere with U.S. foreign relations."

What's the background?

SB4 was ratified by Gov. Greg Abbott on Dec. 18 and goes into effect in March 5. It is one of a handful of new tools Republicans furnished Texas with last month to address record-high monthly illegal border crossings.

The over 300,000 illegal aliens who stole into the nation in December not only set an all-time monthly record, according to CBS News, but possibly pushed the number of reported illegal entries under President Joe Biden's watch past 7 million.

Should the DOJ's intervention fail, SB4 will make illegal entry into the Lone Star State a class B misdemeanor as well as allow for foreign nationals who refuse to leave the country to be charged with a second-degree felony, which carries prison time of up to 20 years.

Under the law, illegal aliens found in Texas "at any time" who have previously been convicted of two or more misdemeanors involving drugs, crimes against a person, or both would be charged with a third-degree felony.

Leftist groups like the ACLU, long supportive of flouting federal immigration law, beat the Biden DOJ to the punch, alleging Texas would be usurping federal authority by enacting SB4.

The Mexican regime also condemned Texas over the legislation, stating on Nov. 15 that "the Government of Mexico categorically rejects any measure that allows state or local authorities to detain and return Mexican or foreign nationals to Mexican territory."

The Biden White House joined other leftist outfits and the foreign power in criticizing Texas. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre called SB4 "an extreme law that will not and does not make the communities in Texas safer."

"And it is incredibly unfortunate. But this is what we see from particular Republicans trying to dehumanize a group of people who are coming here or some of them trying to migrate here," continued Jean-Pierre. "And — and they're putting them in harm’s way. They're putting them in harm's way."

The Biden DOJ threatened Abbott in a Dec. 28 letter that it was planning to "bring a lawsuit to enforce the supremacy of federal law and to enjoining the operation of SB4." It followed through on Wednesday.

DOJ's fight to ax law criminalizing illegal immigration

The lawsuit filed Wednesday "on behalf of the United States, including the Justice Department, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Department of State," claims that "Texas's SB 4 is preempted by federal law and thus violates the Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution. That conclusion is strongly reinforced by the Foreign Commerce Clause."

While acknowledging that improper entry into the U.S. is already a crime, the DOJ cited the Supreme Court's 2012 ruling in Arizona v. United States, stressing "'the removal process' must be 'entrusted to the discretion of the Federal Government,' in part because a 'decision on removability . . . touch[es] on foreign relations and must be made with one voice.'"

In addition to warning that SB4 might "undermine U.S. efforts to convince governments worldwide to implement or strengthen their international protection systems and uphold their respective non-refoulement obligations," the complaint suggested the law would "also impede the federal government's ability to take appropriate enforcement actions and assess a noncitizen' national-security and public-safety risks."

The DOJ requested that the court declare SB4 invalid and permanently enjoin Texas from enforcing the law.

"Texas cannot disregard the United States Constitution and settled Supreme Court precedent," Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian Boynton said in a statement. "We have brought this action to ensure that Texas adheres to the framework adopted by Congress and the Constitution for regulation of immigration."

"Under the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution and longstanding Supreme Court precedent, states cannot adopt immigration laws that interfere with the framework enacted by Congress," said departing Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta. "The Justice Department will continue to fulfill its responsibility to uphold the Constitution and enforce federal law."

Abbott responded Wednesday evening, writing, "Biden sued me today because I signed a law making it illegal for an illegal immigrant to enter or attempt to enter Texas directly from a foreign nation. I like my chances."

"Texas is the only government in America trying to stop illegal immigration," added the Republican governor.

Abbott spokeswoman Renae Eze told CBS News in late December, "Texas is prepared to take this fight all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court to protect Texans and Americans from President Biden's open border policies."

"President Biden's deliberate and dangerous inaction at our southern border has left Texas to fend for itself," continued Eze. "Governor Abbott signed Senate Bill 4 into law last week to help stop the tidal wave of illegal entry into Texas as the President refuses to enforce federal immigration law."

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White House condemns Texas' criminalization of illegal immigration; other open-border leftists sue



Texas Gov. Greg Abbott rankled the White House and other leftist outfits Monday by ratifying legislation that effectively makes illegal immigration a state crime.

While press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre had some unkind words for Republicans seeking to curb criminality and to protect American sovereignty, the ACLU filed a lawsuit to prevent Senate Bill 4 from going into effect in March.

The law

SB4 would make illegal entry into the Lone Star State a class B misdemeanor as well as allow for foreign nationals who refuse to leave the country to be charged with a second-degree felony, which carries prison time of up to 20 years.

Under the law, which may ultimately go before the Supreme Court for review, illegal aliens found in Texas "at any time" who have previously been convicted of two or more misdemeanors involving drugs, crimes against a person, or both would be charged with a third-degree felony.

"Four years ago, the United States had the fewest illegal border crossings in decades," Abbott said in a statement Monday. "It was because of four policies put in place by the Trump administration that led to such a low number of illegal crossings. President Biden has eliminated all of those policies and done nothing to halt illegal immigration."

Over 6.6 million illegal aliens have illegally crossed the border since President Joe Biden took office.

Abbott noted Tuesday on X, "Texas will continue stepping up until we have a new president who will enforce the law."

Biden White House condemns the law

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre lashed out at Texas and Republicans during Tuesday's press briefing, calling SB4 "an extreme law that will not and does not make the communities in Texas safer. It just doesn't."

"I think to add to that is that it is very much in line with what Republicans — many Republicans like to do or tend to do, which is dema-, de-, de-, demonize immigrants and also dehumanize immigrants," continued Jean-Pierre. "This is part of this. And so, uh, this is not who we are as a country. This is not who we should be as a country. Communities should not, should not be individually targeted and put into harm's way."

The press secretary then suggested that Abbott has previously put illegal aliens who voluntarily steal into the nation in harm's way by installing border defenses and "leaving migrants in the side of the road in the middle of winter."

"This is certainly extreme, as we see it. And it is incredibly unfortunate. But this is what we see from particular Republicans trying to dehumanize a group of people who are coming here or some of them trying to migrate here. And — and they're putting them in harm’s way. They're putting them in harm's way," added Jean-Pierre.

A reporter raised the matter of the ACLU of Texas' lawsuit against Texas over SB4 and pressed Jean-Pierre over whether the Biden Department of Justice will similarly seek to preclude the Lone Star State from doing the work the Biden administration appears unwilling to do.

"So, Department of Justice, they're going to decide whether they're going to file a lawsuit here," said Jean-Pierre. "Certainly, I'm not going to get ahead of that."

The press secretary refused to indicate whether she was concerned that the current conservative-leaning Supreme Court might overrule the court's 2012 ruling in Arizona v. United States and/or give Texas a win over SB4, stating only, "There is precedent. It was struck down. I can't speak for this current Court."

— (@)

ACLU sues to axe the law

The ACLU, the ACLU of Texas, and the Texas Civil Rights Project filed a lawsuit Tuesday on behalf of El Paso County and two groups that aid illegal aliens, namely Las Americas and American Gateways.It appears the plaintiffs would prefer to see the ability to clamp down on illegal immigration kept in the hands of those who refuse to wield it.

The lawsuit claims that SB4 violates the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution and usurps federal authority by enabling state and local law enforcement officers to enforce immigration law. Invoking Arizona v. United States, the complaint further stresses that the federal government has exclusive power over immigration.

According to the complaint, SB4 will "frustrate" the groups' ability to work with de facto criminals by sending border-crossers packing or into hiding.

Rochelle Garza, the president of the Texas Civil Rights Project, said in a statement, "SB 4 is unconstitutional and paints a target on the friends & loved ones of all undocumented Texans to be profiled, stopped, or arrested by law enforcement."

The ACLU said in a statement, "We're suing to block Texas from enforcing the most extreme anti-immigrant law in the nation. This unconstitutional law allows Texas judges to deport people and allows police to arrest people over suspicions about immigration status."

If successful in its legal challenge, the ACLU will deliver at least one foreign power a victory.

Blaze News previously reported that Mexican officials are opposed to SB4, noting in a Nov. 15 statement that "the Government of Mexico categorically rejects any measure that allows state or local authorities to detain and return Mexican or foreign nationals to Mexican territory."

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