The Obama administration is seizing on a decision by a federal judge not to consider a case weighing the merits of the president’s executive action on immigration as proof that it is lawful.
U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell declined to rule on Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s suit challenging Obama’s unilateral action providing relief for more than 4 million illegal immigrants, according to the Associated Press.
The case, Howell said, “raises important questions regarding the impact of illegal immigration on this nation, but the questions amount to generalized grievances, which are not proper for the judiciary to address.”
Obama spokesman Eric Schultz issued a statement early Wednesday morning arguing that the decision shows that the president’s executive action on immigration is constitutional.
“Judge Howell’s decision today confirms what the Department of Justice and scholars throughout the country have been saying all along: the president’s executive actions on immigration are lawful,” he said.
“The Supreme Court and Congress have made clear that federal officials can set priorities in enforcing our immigration laws, and the actions announced by the president are consistent with those taken by administrations of both parties for the last half century,” Schultz continued. “The court correctly dismissed Sheriff Arpaio’s lawsuit.”
The sheriff notified the court that he will continue to pursue the case in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, the AP reported.
