Arizona, Montana file lawsuit to block Biden admin rule making it harder to arrest illegals

Arizona, Montana file lawsuit to block Biden admin rule making it harder to arrest illegals
Image: YouTube screen grab

Arizona and Montana have filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration for implementing new rules making it more difficult for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to arrest and deport illegal aliens.

The lawsuit is an amendment to one filed in February that originally addressed Biden’s 100-day moratorium on deportations. The states contend that the administration’s policies would have devastating consequences.

“Meth trafficked into Montana by Mexican drug cartels has wracked our state,” Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen said. “The problem will only be made worse if the Biden administration continues to allow criminals to stay in the country. The Biden administration is failing its basic responsibility to Americans.”

Will this presidential election be the most important in American history?

Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich shared that view. “Blindly releasing thousands of people, including convicted criminals and those who may be spreading COVID-19 into our state,” he said, “is both unconscionable and a violation of federal law.”

States Suing Biden for Illegal Immigration Policies

A statement on Brnovich’s website also claims the Biden administration is responsible for a “growing crisis at the southwest border. … [T]here are caravans of undocumented aliens heading to the southwest border because of these lax DHS policies.”

Guidance issued by the Biden administration last month instructs ICE to narrow arrests of illegals to only three categories: those who pose a threat to national security, those who have crossed the border since Nov. 1, and those who committed “aggravated felonies.”

“If asked about the poorest policy choice I’ve ever seen in government, this would be a strong contender,” Brnovich said in discussing the Biden administration lawsuit.

Both Montana and Arizona have also filed a motion for a preliminary injunction to block the policy from going into effect while the case is ongoing.

Administration officials have countered that the guidance doesn’t explicitly state that illegal aliens can’t be arrested or deported, but officers would need approval from higher up if the individuals in question fall outside the three categories.

The policies are “expected to lead to a significant decrease in arrests and deportations,” Fox reports.

Lawsuit Against the Biden Administration – Will Others Follow?

These suits may be just the beginning considering that the burgeoning crisis at the border will have an effect on numerous other states, if not all of them.

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, despite insisting last week that there was no crisis at the border, is now begging for volunteers to help with an “overwhelming” surge of migrants.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is deploying National Guard troops to the border claiming, “The crisis at our southern border continues to escalate because of Biden Administration policies that refuse to secure the border and invite illegal immigration.”

The lawsuit from Arizona and Montana includes declarations from law enforcement officials which “illustrate the harms” these states “will suffer under the new DHS policies.”

Cross-posted at Mental Recession

Rusty Weiss

Rusty Weiss

Rusty Weiss is editor of the Mental Recession, one of the top conservative blogs of 2012. His writings have appeared at the Daily Caller, American Thinker, FoxNews.com, Big Government, the Times Union, and the Troy Record.

Comments

For your convenience, you may leave commments below using Disqus. If Disqus is not appearing for you, please disable AdBlock to leave a comment.