House passes resolution supporting legal challenge of Obama’s immigration executive order, not all Republicans onboard

The House adopted a resolution 234-186 on Thursday authorizing House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) to appear as amicus curiae on behalf of the House of Representatives before the U.S. Supreme Court in United States v. Texas, which challenges President Barack Obama’s executive order on immigration.

More than 25 states have joined a lawsuit challenging the Obama administration’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) executive order.

U.S. Rep. Lynn Jenkins (R-KS) voted in favor of the resolution, H.Res. 639.

“Last year, President Obama decided to ignore the United States Constitution and attempted to govern through his pen rather than by the law, allowing millions of illegal immigrants to stay in America in the process,” Jenkins said. “Yet, the courts have consistently struck down the president’s unconstitutional executive overreach. I will continue to fight against the president’s unlawful executive actions and remind him that our government is a system of checks and balances — he cannot act alone.”

U.S. Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-FL), however, was one of the five House Republicans who voted against the resolution. He said that the best way to reverse DACA would be to pass meaningful immigration reform.

“Defending the Constitution’s separation of powers doctrine is absolutely fundamental,” Curbelo said. “However, House leaders do not need this resolution in order to defend Article I. For too long both parties have preferred to score petty political points using the immigration issue rather than passing meaningful reform to secure the border, reform our visa system and find a fair solution for the undocumented. The surest, and most constitutionally solvent way to end the president’s executive overreach, is to pass meaningful immigration reform — not by employing empty tactics that ignore the root cause of the problem.”

In addition to Curbelo, U.S. Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL), Bob Dold (R-IL), Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) and Richard Hanna (R-NY) voted to opposition to the measure.