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Roger Williams: Court Immigration Ruling Shows “Balance of Power”

May 26, 2015

AUSTIN, TEXAS – Congressman Roger Williams (R-Texas) today released the following statement after a federal appeals court upheld an injunction against President Obama's executive action on immigration.

"Today we were shown the importance of our government's balance of power," said Williams. "Immigration policy of this magnitude must be drafted in the halls of Congress, not by one person in the White House. Whether he likes it or not, this president must learn that he cannot pass laws without working with us. It really comes down to a simple civics lesson, which has proven incredibly difficult for this former constitutional law professor to understand."

Earlier this month, Williams, along with 87 of his House colleagues and 25 Senators signed an amicus brief filed with the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals that supported U.S. Judge Andrew Hannon's ruling which blocked the Obama Administration from enacting the president's executive action on immigration. The brief read:

"The Constitution vested in Congress the exclusive authority to make law and set immigration policies…The Government also exceeded the bounds of its prosecutorial discretion and abdicated its duty to faithfully execute the law."

Earlier this year, Williams wrote a column, Obama Must Enforce Immigration Law, Not Create It, in which he argued that the president is rewarding lawbreakers when he should be encouraging legal immigration to increase America's competitiveness in a global economy.

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