The Arizona immigration law was challenged Tuesday in a lawsuit that was filed by the U.S. Justice Department. The government wants to block the law from taking effect later this month. The Arizona immigration lawsuit claims that Arizona's new law is unconstitutional because it overrides federal immigration law. Supporters of the Arizona immigration law say that a state overwhelmed with illegal immigration can't wait for the federal government to try and deal with the immigration reform.

Article source: Federal Arizona immigration lawsuit says state law is illegal by Personal Money Store

Feds - Arizona immigration law is unconstitutional

The Arizona immigration law demands state and local police to question and possibly arrest illegal immigrants during the enforcement of other laws. Immigrants must carry their alien registration documents at all times. As outlined by the Washington Post, the Arizona immigration lawsuit says the law illegally intrudes on federal prerogatives, invoking as its main argument the legal doctrine of "preemption," which says federal law trumps state statutes. The Justice Department argues that enforcing immigration laws is a federal responsibility.

Feds - Immigration law violates civil rights

The preemption doctrine is getting used in the Arizona immigration lawsuit because it was established in Supreme Court decisions. It was said by the Post that some legal experts have said this can be a good strategy to persuade a judge to declare the Arizona immigration law unconstitutional. But the Arizona immigration lawsuit also asserts the Arizona law would violate civil rights and lead to police harassment of both U.S. citizens and legal immigrants.

Arizona seems to be the epicenter of the immigration crisis

AZ passed the immigration law after many years of public outcry over social troubles credited to illegal immigration, including unemployment, drug trafficking and violent kidnappings. The Associated Press reports that the state is the biggest gateway into the U.S. for illegal immigration and is home to an estimated 460,000 illegal immigrants. Arizona's Republican governor, who is Jan Brewer, has accused the Obama administration of failing to secure the border with Mexico, forcing her state to act on its own on the immigration crisis. Brewer's spokesman told AP that the governor would have preferred the federal government focus its resources on the immigration crisis rather than the Arizona immigration lawsuit.

According to a poll, border security trumps immigration reform

Despite the outcry for immigration reform legislation, as outlined by CNN, a number of senior Democratic sources said they see virtually no chance of Congress stepping up to deal with it before November's midterm elections. A CNN/Opinion Research Corp. national poll conducted in late May says nearly nine out of 10 Americans want to increase U.S. law enforcement along the border with Mexico. Eight in 10 also supported a program that would allow illegal immigrants already within the United States to stay here and apply for legal residency if they have a job and pay taxes. But 38 percent say that immigration reform should be a higher priority than border security.

More data accessible at these websites:

Washington Post

washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/06/AR2010070601928.html?hpid=topnews

Associated Press

google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jup3stJNgod5yvfvOU1IInU0erAwD9GPN88G0

CNN

cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/07/06/arizona.immigration.lawsuit/index.html?npt=NP1