Congressional Republicans have thrown their weight against the Obama administration in the case deciding the legality of the executive branch’s executive actions on immigration. On Monday, 113 GOP lawmakers filed an amicus brief with the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals arguing that Barack Obama violated Congress’ constitutional role and disrupted the “delicate balance of powers.” The brief said Congress has the responsibility to decide an alien’s rights to be in this country — as clarified by the Supreme Court. Sure, when Congress is silent on an issue, the president can go ahead and do his or her part to fix the problem. But Congress already provided guidance on immigration. “Critically,” the brief reads, “Congress’s refusal to enact President Obama’s preferred policy is not ‘silence’; it represents the constitutional system working as intended. Congress has enacted extensive immigration laws — they are simply not enacted in the manner President Obama prefers. Differing policy preferences do not provide license to, as President Obama said, ‘change the law.’”

Republicans are confident that Judge Andrew Hanen will ultimately strike down Obama’s executive action. After all, the federal government has treated his orders with distain. Turns out, after Hanen ordered a stop to the implementation of Obama’s immigration plans, the government went ahead and continued implementing them anyway. This case may very well be a damning judgment on Obama’s power to execute executive orders. More…