Obama Statement on Ruling in Hazleton Anti-Immigrant Ordinance Case

Chicago, IL-- Senator Obama released the following statement today in response to Judge James Munley's ruling that the city of Hazleton’s anti-immigrant ordinance is unconstitutional.

"Today's ruling by Judge James Munley is a victory for all Americans. The anti-immigrant law passed by Mayor Barletta was unconstitutional and unworkable – and it underscores the need for comprehensive immigration reform so local communities do not continue to take matters into their own hands. Recently, the U.S. Senate failed the American people by blocking progress on immigration reform for the second time in two years. We cannot put this off any longer. The ongoing problems with our immigration system are dividing our country, and distracting us from the work we need to do in other important areas such as health care, education, and jobs. We need to act urgently to create an immigration system that secures our borders and enforces our laws, reflects our best traditions as a nation of immigrants, and upholds the values and ideals that all Americans cherish. I have been fighting for that kind of system for several years now, and I will continue fighting for that kind of system until we pass comprehensive immigration reform once and for all."

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PA DEMOCRATIC PARTY
July 26, 2007
CONTACT: Abe Amorós
PHONE: (717) 829-6184
PA DEMOCRATIC PARTY APPLAUDS DECISION BY FEDERAL JUDGE THAT MAKES HAZLETON ORDINANCE UNCONSTITUTIONAL

Reinforces that only Federal Government has jurisdiction over immigration
issues

HARRISBURG: Pennsylvania Democratic Party Chairman T.J. Rooney today applauded a decision rendered by federal judge in ruling that Republican Mayor Lou Barletta and the City of Hazleton do not have the authority to enforce a mean-spirited, anti-immigrant ordinance that drove Latino business owners and residents out of town.

By JULIA PRESTON
Staff Writer

A federal judge in Pennsylvania yesterday struck down ordinances adopted by the City of Hazleton to bar illegal immigrants from working or renting homes there, the most resounding legal blow so far to local efforts across the country to crack down on illegal immigration.

The decision, by Judge James M. Munley of Federal District Court, presents a new roadblock to local officials who want to take action against illegal immigration after broad federal legislation to address the issue failed in the Senate last month.

Judge Munley ruled that ordinances first passed last July by the Hazleton City Council interfered with federal law, which regulates immigration, and violated the due process rights of employers, landlords and illegal immigrants.

By Matt Birkbeck
Of The Morning Call

A federal judge struck down Hazleton's illegal-immigration ordinance Thursday, calling it unconstitutional in a groundbreaking decision that will reverberate throughout the nation and affect more than 100 other communities considering similar laws.

U.S. District Judge James M. Munley, in a 206-page ruling, said the ordinance violates due process protections and the Supremacy Clause, which acknowledges federal law as the supreme law of the land.

''Even if federal law did not conflict with Hazleton's measures, the city could not enact an ordinance that violates rights the Constitution guarantees to every person in the United States, whether legal resident or not,'' Munley wrote.

By L.A. TARONE
Staff Writer

A disappointed yet undeterred Mayor Lou Barletta called the federal ruling striking down the city’s illegal immigration law a “slip, not a fall.”

“This fight is far from over,” the mayor said Thursday. “Hazleton will not back down.”

Kris Kobach, a part of the city’s legal team that defended the Illegal Immigration Relief Act, joined Barletta on the steps of city hall about three hours after U.S. District
Judge James M. Munley handed down his decision.

Kobach termed the ruling “the paradigm of judicial activism,” and pledged he would argue the city’s case through the court system for free if necessary.

By WADE MALCOLM
Staff Writer

A federal judge struck down the Illegal Immigration Relief Act Thursday, ruling Hazleton’s proposed crackdown on landlords and employers doing business with illegal immigrants is unconstitutional.

In a 206-page opinion, U.S. District Judge James M. Munley stated, “Federal law prohibits Hazleton from enforcing any of the provisions of its ordinance” aimed at expelling illegal immigrants.

“Whatever frustrations ... the city of Hazleton may feel about the current state of federal immigration enforcement, the nature of the political system in the United States prohibits the city from enacting ordinances that disrupt a carefully drawn federal statutory scheme,” Munley wrote.

By JIM DINO and LESLIE RICHARDSON
Staff Writers

A number of area municipal officials wanted to enact illegal immigration laws like Hazleton’s, but were waiting to see what the U.S. District Court decision would be.

When that decision did not go the city’s way Thursday, elected officials in most municipalities said they will not follow through with their own laws.

But that doesn’t mean the idea is dead.

That’s because they know Thursday’s decision against Hazleton Mayor Lou Baretta’s Illegal Immigration Relief Act is not the final word on the issue.

In Kline Township, Supervisor Nick Sanko championed the approval of an ordinance there and had a specific reason for doing so.

By STEVE MOCARSKY and RORY SWEENEY
Staff Writers

SCRANTON – A federal judge on Thursday struck down Hazleton’s illegal immigration ordinances and issued a permanent injunction preventing their enforcement.

U.S. District Judge James Munley concluded in his decision that federal law prohibits Hazleton from enforcing any of the provisions of the ordinances contained in the city’s Illegal Immigration Relief Act.

But the legal battle over the laws that have divided the city for the past year is far from over.

Mayor Lou Barletta called Munley’s decision unfair and vowed to appeal it to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia.

I am very disappointed Judge Munley has ruled against all legal residents of the City of Hazleton. This fight is far from over. I have said it many times before: Hazleton is not going to back down. We are discouraged to see a federal judge has decided – wrongly, we believe – that Hazleton and cities like it around the nation cannot enact legislation to protect their citizens, their services, and their budgets.

We are going to appeal to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia. But today’s decision shows the size of the challenge a small city like Hazleton, Pennsylvania, faces when it chooses to take on the powerful, well-funded special interest groups and lobbyists.

Thursday, 26 July 2007
By WADE MALCOLM
Staff Writer

A federal judge has struck down the Illegal Immigration Relief Act, ruling Hazleton's proposed crackdown on landlords and employers doing business with illegal immigrants is unconstitutional.

In a 206-page opinion, U.S. District Judge James M. Munley stated, "Federal law prohibits Hazleton from enforcing any of the provisions of its ordinance" aimed at expelling illegal immigrants.

"Whatever frustrations ... the city of Hazleton may feel about the current state of federal immigration enforcement, the nature of the political system in the United States prohibits the city from enacting ordinances that disrupt a carefully drawn federal statutory scheme," Munley wrote.