Immigration Law Hearing Begins

On Thursday U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton—a Democratic appointee—called into question the Obama administration's insistence that Arizona's controversial immigration law infringes upon federal immigration enforcement. "Why can't Arizona be as inhospitable as they wish to people who have entered or remained in the United States?" she asked. As Arizona Governor Jan Brewer, a staunch proponent of the law, watched silently, Bolton questioned the core ethos of the Justice Department's contention that the Arizona law is unconstitutional: that immigration enforcement is an exclusive federal privilege, one that pre-empts the Arizona law. "Where is the preemption if everybody who is arrested for some crime has their immigration status checked?” she asked. As the federal lawsuit moves forward Bolton may or may not grant an injunction to stop the law from taking effect.