Justice Department to sue Arizona on immigration law

It's official. Hillary was right; she totally stole the spotlight from someone else in breaking this news.

Hopefully only (mainly) good things happen from this point forward

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By RANDAL C. ARCHIBOLD and MARK LANDLER

The New York Times

The Obama administration has decided to file suit to strike down an Arizona law aimed at deporting illegal immigrants, thrusting itself into the debate over how the United States should enforce immigration policies.

The federal government only occasionally intervenes forcefully in a state's affairs, and such action carries significant political risks.

With immigration continuing to be a hot-button issue in political campaigns, the Arizona law, which grants local police greater authority to check the legal status of people they stop, has become a rallying cry for the tea-party followers and other conservative groups.

The lawsuit, though widely anticipated, was confirmed by an unexpected source: Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who answered a question about it from an Ecuadorean TV journalist in an interview June 8 that went all but unnoticed until this week.

Noting that President Obama had publicly objected to the law, Clinton said, "The Justice Department, under his direction, will be bringing a lawsuit against the act."

A spokesman for the Justice Department said the matter was under review, but other senior administration officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said a decision had been made and only the details of the legal filing were being worked out.

These officials said several government agencies were being consulted over the best approach to block the statute, which, barring any successful legal challenges, is scheduled to take effect July 29. At least five lawsuits have been filed in federal court, and civil-rights groups have asked a federal judge to issue an injunction while the cases are heard.

A State Department spokesman, Philip Crowley, said Clinton's comments, made during a visit to Ecuador's capital, Quito, were meant to answer qualms about the law in Mexico and other Latin American countries.

In focusing on Arizona, the Obama administration is making a politically risky calculation: The move could help repair America's image south of the border but open the administration to charges that it is trampling states' rights. A legal battle could energize the right during an election year.

At home, polls show that a majority of Americans support the law, or at least the idea of states more rigorously enforcing immigration laws. But Latino groups and elected officials have denounced it as an affront to Hispanics. Several large demonstrations, for and against the law, have been held in Phoenix and other cities.

Legal action has been widely expected, given Obama's repeated statements against it and the concerns that Attorney General Eric Holder has voiced in interviews and news conferences.

In late May, Justice Department lawyers traveled to Phoenix to speak with lawyers from the offices of the state attorney general, Terry Goddard, and Gov. Jan Brewer about the possibility of litigation. Goddard, who is seeking the Democratic nomination for governor, and Brewer, a Republican who is running for re-election, both say a federal lawsuit is unwarranted.

In a side drama, Goddard on Friday took his office off the case, bowing to the wishes of Brewer, who had said his opposition to the law would make it difficult for him to defend it. Goddard said his decision had nothing to do with the Justice Department's plans.

Source: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...95_ariz19.html

what i really wanna know is what happended during the meeting on thurs!! does anyone know anytttin??

there was a meeting on thursday??

Hillary should have been our queen. I would have bowed down willingly.