Carter Steps Up Fight Against Obama Amnesty

Press Release

Congressman John Carter (R-TX) has stepped up the fight against a default amnesty plan for illegal aliens by adding his support to the HALT Act, HR 2497, which bars the Department of Homeland Security from ignoring millions of illegal aliens.

"Congress has rejected blanket amnesty for illegal aliens, so the Obama Administration is now attempting to circumvent the law by ignoring it," says Carter. "This is not a legitimate use of prosecutorial discretion, but a scheme to bypass the constitutional requirements of changing the law."
Carter has cosponsored the "Hinder the Administration's Legalization Temptation Act", the HALT Act by House Judiciary Committee Chairman and fellow Texan Lamar Smith. The HALT Act essentially bans enactment of a "prosecutorial discretion" directive issued June 17 by the Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), John Morton.

The Morton memo encourages federal agents to ignore or grant deferred action against illegal aliens for "relevant factors" including lack of conviction of serious crimes; attending school; having a relative who is a U.S. citizen; having been present illegally for multiple years; having a relative serving in the U.S. military; age; and other factors. The assortment of categories virtually guarantees amnesty for the majority of illegal aliens in the country.

Carter joined Congressman Ted Poe (R-TX) in passing similar language barring the default amnesty scheme as an amendment to H.R. 2017, the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act that passed the House in June and awaits action in the Senate.

The former Texas judge has been actively fighting the President's attempt to undermine Congressional authority on immigration policy since August of 2010, when the Administration without warning dismissed the cases of 17,000 illegal aliens facing trial in Texas.

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