GOP House Delegation united in vote to overturn Obama’s unilateral amnesty, split over so-called “Dreamers”

By Matt Rooney | The Save Jersey Blog

Border wall brownsvile illegal immigration“We need to reform our nation’s broken immigration system, but we can’t start that discussion when President Obama is overstepping his Constitutional authority and unilaterally creating new policy.”

That’s how newly-minted Congressman Rep. Tom MacArthur (R, NJ-03) explained his vote to overturn President Obama’s unilateral and wildly-unconstitutional November 2014 amnesty executive order, Save Jerseyans, shortly after the House voted 237 to 190 to block temporary deportation relief and grant work visas for an estimate 4 million illegal aliens.

For MacArthur, the President’s disregard for the rule of law supplanted all other concerns. “That’s why I voted for this bill that blocks any funds from being used to enforce his executive action,” he continued.

Still, MacArthur insists a comprehensive solution needs to be a part of a Constitutionally-appropriate resolution to the larger immigration debate. “However, I am firmly convinced that this can only be step one of our approach to immigration,” MacArthur added. “The House today took much-needed action to return to a balance of power between the executive and legislative branches of government. I think this was the right move, and I supported defunding the mechanisms used to carry out the President’s illegal executive order. But it’s equally important to continue the conversation over the next few months. I look forward to bringing my colleagues on both sides of the aisle together to find solutions to our immigration problem instead of letting Washington politics continue to divide us.”

tom macarthur
Tom MacArthur (center right), the NJ GOP’s newest House member, voted to overturn POTUS’s November 2014 amnesty action.

Here’s the New Jersey roll call:

Republicans Frelinghuysen (Y); Garrett (Y); Lance (Y); LoBiondo (Y); MacArthur (Y); Smith (Y)

Democrats — Norcross (N); Pallone (N); Pascrell (N); Payne (N); Sires (N); Watson Coleman (N)

The amendment was part of the larger ‘Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act for 2015’ that passed with 236 to 191. 

Three N.J. Republicans, however, including MacArthur, joined a group of about two-dozen Republicans and voted against a different amendment to negate the President’s 2012 move to stay deportation and grant work permits where 600,000 “dreamers” (illegals who entered the U.S. as kids) are concerned.

That measure still passed albeit by a narrower margin, 218 to 209:

Republicans Frelinghuysen (Y); Garrett (Y); Lance (Y); LoBiondo (N); MacArthur (N); Smith (N)

Democrats Norcross (N); Pallone (N); Pascrell (N); Payne (N); Sires (N); Watson Coleman (N)

Rep. Leonard Lance (R, NJ-07) voted for both amendments. “Today’s House-passed legislation fully funds our Nation’s homeland security needs while simultaneously takes action to halt President Obama’s unilateral executive order,” Lance stated in a press release after the final vote. “The bill further enhances our national security by strengthening border security, increasing governmental transparency and improving immigration enforcement.  And it defunds the President’s executive action completely.

Lance“Executive actions that ignore our rule of law are unacceptable,” Lance, who just started his fourth term, added. “The U.S. Senate should pass this legislation and the President should sign it into law so that we can work together constructively to reform our Nation’s broken immigration system.”

Both actions by the President were grossly unconstitutional and should be overturned, Save Jerseyans. No doubt about that. The only substantive differences between November 2014 and June 2012? Well, (1) there’s some historical precedence for limited stays of deportation, even if they are unconstitutional on their face, and (2) it’s a rhetorical pain in the butt to legislate in a way that’s perceived as going after kids.

I wouldn’t still voted YEA on both amendments, without flinching, for patently obvious reasons… whatever that’s worth to you… 

To be continued…

 

Matt Rooney
About Matt Rooney 8403 Articles
MATT ROONEY is SaveJersey.com's founder and editor-in-chief, a practicing New Jersey attorney, and the host of 'The Matt Rooney Show' on 1210 WPHT every Sunday evening from 7-10PM EST.

12 Comments

  1. MacArthur has proven once again he is no Conservative. He only voted for the one ammendment,and no on the other. Siding with the Democrats. At least we still have Garrett who once again courageously voted the way his constiuants wanted .No on both. Macarthur once again did not listen to the people and voted for special interests and theChamber of Commerce. Sticking it to the American worker over imported wokers.

  2. You’re not surprised at this, Ms. Shannon, are you? Welcome your support in 2016

  3. No I am not. And the GOP wonders why people are so fed up. And anybody that disagrees gets labled and put in a box. The sad thing is that Mcarthur lied to the voters. He wore a mask through the process to get elected. He came out of nowhere, paid his way into the primary, called himself “the true Conservative”, and aggressively attacked the real Conservative in the race to push him out. If he is a centrist,as he is now labeling himself as, then he should have ran as one. He played the voters as fools and this is only going to alienate and anger more and more people, as the GOP keeps getting smaller. Great article in National Review online about the mandate the GOP was given in this last election. Tom Mcarthur and others like him, need to know.

  4. I hope the NJ Stolen Valor Act is passed into law. Stafford Twp NJ Mayor John Spodofora is a fake Vietnam Navy SEAL. The Vietnam War Medal of Valor he boasted was bought from a hunting club magazine. http://Www.johnspodofora.com

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