Judge: Alabama Immigration Statute Not Preempted By Federal Law

When a federal judge issues a temporary injunction that prevents a law from going into effect, it is usually a precursor or figleaf for subsequently throwing out the entire law. Surprise: U.S. District Judge Sharon Lovelace Blackburn Wednesday gave the green light to most of Alabama's immigration enforcement law, House Bill 56, that she had put on hold in August. Unlike Obamacare, for example, the Alabama law contained a severability clause that allows a judge to pick and choose among acceptable or unacceptable provisions.

U.S. District Judge Sharon Blackburn ruled that federal law does not prohibit state officials from checking the immigration status of students or suspects pulled over by police. Blackburn also refused to stop provisions that make it a misdemeanor for illegal immigrants not to carry immigration papers, allow police to hold suspected illegal immigrants without bond and bar state courts from enforcing contracts entered into by illegal immigrants.

Another example of misplaced priorities: Instead of running around the country suing states for taking action against illegal immigration, the Justice Department and the Obama administration should be using federal resources to securing our borders and enforcing existing law.

In her decision, Judge Blackburn wrote, in part, that

Nothing in the text of the [federal Immigration and Naturalization Act] expressly preempts states from legislating on the issue of verification of an individual’s citizenship and immigration status. There is also nothing in the INA which reflects Congressional intent that the United States occupy the field as it pertains to the identification of persons unlawfully present in the United States.

Read the full 115-page opinion here.

Alabama Governor Robert Bentley comments on the ruling:

The Most Unpopular Governor in the U.S. is...

If Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez is in as bad shape as some reports claim, will Connecticut's governor order flags to flown at half mast? Presumably the ailing Chavez is Governor Dannel (a.k.a. Dan) Malloy's role model, given the heavy-handed way Malloy has been behaving in office. But Malloy's tactics have come at a price.

According to Public Policy Polling, a Democrat outfit, Malloy is the most unpopular Democrat governor in America.

52% of Connecticut voters say that if they could do it all over they'd vote for Republican Tom Foley, compared to only 41% who would stick with incumbent Dan Malloy.

That desire to elect someone else is a product of Malloy's continuing unpopularity. Only 36% of voters approve of him to 52% disapproving. That makes him the most unpopular Democratic Governor in the country that PPP has polled on this year. His numbers with independents are bad at a 36/55 approval spread but the biggest problem for him is the party base- even with Democrats just 49% think he's doing a good job to 37% who disapprove. It's rare to find a major politician under 50% approval within their own party.

Malloy was narrowly "elected" in the first place only after some shady ballot counting in the city of Bridgeport.

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