Red state #Resistance to the current administration’s spate of executive orders and inept policies is expanding.
Arizona and Montana have now expanded a lawsuit against the current administration, asserting that Biden’s immigration policies will badly harm border communities.
The initial lawsuit, filed in early February solely by Arizona, was focused on challenging Biden’s attempt to impose a 100-day moratorium on migrant deportations.Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen joined the updated lawsuit after Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich reframed it around interim guidance issued by Immigration and Customs Enforcement last month.That guidance allows ICE officers to focus on three categories for arrest and deportation: those who pose a threat to national security, those who have crossed the border since Nov. 1 and those who have committed “aggravated felonies.”
I recently noted that Montana Governor Greg Gianforte also recently blasted Biden over border security and immigration issues. In his statement, the governor cited increasing meth distribution as a real source of alarm. Montana’s participation in the lawsuit is indicative of the degree of concern about that issue by the state’s leaders.
The suit estimates that Montana has some 4,000-5,000 immigrants living in the state without legal permission. That’s one of the smallest populations among U.S. states of immigrants without legal permission in the U.S. as a percentage of the total state population, according to a 2016 Pew Research Center tally.Knudsen claimed in a statement that methamphetamine brought to Montana by Mexican drug cartels has “wracked our state” and would get worse under the Biden administration’s immigration policy.
In announcing the addition of Montana to the lawsuit, Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich also highlighted to concern about COVID-19 spreading as illegal immigrants streamed across the border.
“We expanded our previously filed lawsuit against DHS over its new immigration policy that halts nearly all deportations for 100 days, even those charged with or convicted of crimes. @MTAGKnudsen joins lawsuit on behalf of Montana,” Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich tweeted Tuesday.“Blindly releasing thousands of people, including convicted criminals and those that may be spreading COVID-19, is both unconscionable and a violation of federal law,” Brnovich added. “This must be stopped now to avoid a dangerous humanitarian crisis.”
I hope that the states prevail in these cases and that they are joined by others as well.
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