Governor Jan Brewer Slams Foreign Nations Over SB 1070

Arizona Governor Jan Brewer has just released a statement on her website regarding the stance ten Latin American countries are taking with the Obama Justice Department against Arizona in their efforts to secure the border with Mexico.

PHOENIX – Governor Jan Brewer today filed a motion stating her opposition to foreign countries’ participation in the U.S. Department of Justice’s challenge to SB 1070 at the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and requesting the court’s permission to respond to their brief.

Mexico and 10 other foreign governments have asked the court to participate in the appeal by filing an amicus brief supporting the U.S. Department of Justice against the State of Arizona in the defense of SB 1070. Mexico is joined by Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru, and Chile in opposing SB 1070 and enforcement measures that have been a part of U.S. federal law for decades.

The Arizona Legislature enacted SB 1070 primarily to require that Arizona’s law enforcement officers cooperate in the enforcement of federal immigration laws and, pursuant to the state’s broad police powers, to adopt state crimes that mirror existing federal laws. These laws were duly passed by the Arizona Legislature to protect the citizens of Arizona from the federal government’s failure to enforce the immigration laws.

Governor Brewer’s motion asserts that the opinions of foreign governments have no bearing on whether a state law providing for cooperative enforcement of federal immigration law in Arizona complies with the U. S. Constitution. In addition, the foreign government’s brief raises issues that are unsupported by the facts in the record and have little relevance to the issues presented in this preliminary injunction appeal.

“As do many citizens, I find it incredibly offensive that these foreign governments are using our court system to meddle in a domestic legal dispute and to oppose the rule of law,” said Governor Brewer. “What’s even more offensive is that this effort has been supported by the U.S. Department of Justice. American sovereignty begins in the U.S. Constitution and at the border. I am confident the Ninth Circuit will do the right thing and recognize foreign interference in U.S. legal proceedings and allow the State of Arizona to respond to their brief.”