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Defunding President Obama's Executive Actions




“Simply put: securing the border and stopping executive amnesty is a national security priority. We must stop the President’s damaging actions right now, before they take further root and magnify the growing constitutional crisis that we are facing.”


Remarks from Rep. Brad Wenstrup on defunding President Obama's unconstitutional executive orders

Last November, President Obama continued his unconstitutional campaign by refusing to enforce our current immigration laws.

When it happened, I pledged to fight this egregious overreach – because the American people will not stand for it. This week the House is doing just that.

We will not back down from a President who threatens our Constitutional foundation with a pen and a phone.

The President’s actions, dating back years, undermine our legal process, and the President is not solving the glaring problems that continue to encourage illegal behavior at our borders. But you and I both know, we can’t answer lawlessness with further lawlessness.

  1. The President’s actions are not fair to the millions of immigrants who come to our nation legally, waiting in line and following the rules.
  2. They’re not fair to our law enforcement officers, who have to navigate and increasingly complex set of rules, replacing their common sense with White House decrees.
  3. And these executive actions are not fair to you, the American taxpayer, to continue paying for this lawlessness.

Let me take a moment to outline how Congress is responding with this week’s legislation, aiming to restore the rule of law and Constitutional order.

  • This legislation is specifically targeted to defund the president’s unconstitutional, executive actions on immigration in their entirety by eliminating all funds -- anywhere in the budget -- for implementation of the President's unauthorized actions.
  • This includes executive orders, memos, prosecutorial discretion, and future actions the President may take while ignoring Congress and the American people.
  • Additionally, it ensures no federal benefits to those covered by the President's executive amnesty and makes clear that the use of funds is legal immigration and border enforcement.

This is the action our nation needs: it’s what the American people want. I’ve talked to many of you in recent weeks, and heard from even more through emails, phone calls, and facebook comments to my office.

In the conversations and correspondences, I hear a reoccurring message: unilateral action from the White House must be stopped, and any action on immigration must start with border security and I agree.

Simply put: securing the border and stopping executive amnesty is a national security priority.

We must stop the President’s damaging actions right now, before they take further root and magnify the growing constitutional crisis that we are facing.