Ninth Circuit Upholds Invalidation of Arizona Immigration Law

The Ninth Circuit has upheld invalidation of the most controversial parts of Arizona's anti immigrant legislation SB-1070. Ashby Jones of The Wall Street Journal has the full story up here:

"...on Monday, the 2010 Arizona law that targets illegal immigration landed again on our radar screen when the Ninth Circuit upheld a lower court’s ruling blocking portions of the law from going into effect. Click here for the LAT story; here for the opinion. Click here, here, here, here and here for earlier LB posts."

The Governor of Arizona Janet Brewer filed suit asking the Ninth Circuit to overturn a federal courts decision to stop the most controversial portions of the law from going into effect:

"Federal Judge Susan Bolton concluded that several of the law’s most controversial and far-reaching provisions indeed encroach on the federal government’s power and authority to regulate immigration. On Monday, the Ninth Circuit agreed. Wrote Judge Richard A. Paez:"

"The relevant provisions of S.B. 1070 facially conflict with Congressional intent.

We stress that the question before us is not, as Arizona has portrayed, whether state and local law enforcement officials can apply the statute in a constitutional way… This formulation misses the point: there can be no constitutional application of a statute that, on its face, conflicts with Congressional intent and therefore is preempted by the Supremacy Clause.

By imposing mandatory obligations on state and local officers, Arizona interferes with the federal government’s authority to implement its priorities and strategies in law enforcement, turning Arizona officers into state-directed DHS agents."

The full opinion from the 9th Circuit can be read here. Governor Brewer took to to Fox News Greta Van Susteren show to among other things ask for money to continue to fight for SB-1070 . The full video and transcript can be seen here. The New York Times piece can be read here, The Washington Post here as well as a good round up of reactions from within Arizona here.