Ask the Expert: Marshall Fitz on the Justice Department's Lawsuit Against Arizona

Why is the Department of Justice filing a lawsuit against Arizona's immigration law?

Well, Arizona has passed one of the most extreme and harsh state-based immigration laws in the country. It would lead to racial profiling if it were implemented, and it is an unconstitutional usurpation of federal authority. So the federal government, the Department of Justice, has to file suit here. They've got to re-establish the federal supremacy over immigration regulation and immigration enforcement. The Arizona law is said to go into effect at the end of July, and so the filing of this lawsuit by the federal government is intended to preempt that implementation date.

What effect could this lawsuit have on the Arizona law?

If it has its intended effect, the federal government's lawsuit will stop the Arizona law from being implemented on July 29. There are a number of lawsuits that have already been filed by other groups, that are also pending, with the federal district court in Arizona. I think there's a strong likelihood that a preliminary injunction will be granted in this case because irreparable harm could attach if this law were to go into effect. The ultimate, long-term goal of this litigation is to permanently enjoin, permanently prevent the Arizona law from becoming effective.

Why is comprehensive immigration reform a better approach than enacting state laws?

Comprehensive immigration reform is the only way to actually fix our broken immigration system. The state of Arizona is understandably and justifiably frustrated with the failure of Congress, the failure of this and previous administrations from finally solving this problem once and for all. But the expression of that frustration through a law like Arizona's crosses not only a constitutional line but also is bad public policy. You can't 50 states with 50 different sets of regulations, 50 different sets of enforcement procedures and protocols. To do so would revert us back to the Articles of Confederation days where each of the states in that federation were creating their own immigration policy, their own foreign policy. It would be like 50 states minting their own dollar bills, and obviously it's something that we can't have. It's something that can only be done at the national level. The federal government has to reassert its authority in this instance, and comprehensive immigration reform is the way to fix our broken immigration system.