A federal judge has declared parts of President Obama's immigration executive actions unconstitutional,
in the first court opinion to tackle Obama's controversial policy changes.
In an opinion filed
Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge Arthur Schwab, in Pennsylvania, said Obama's immigration actions are invalid and effectively
count as "legislation" from the Executive Branch.
"President Obama's
unilateral legislative action violates the separation of powers provided for in the United States Constitution as well as
the Take Care Clause, and therefore, is unconstitutional," the judge wrote.
The
opinion, though, is unique in that it did not come in response to a challenge to Obama's immigration policy announcement.
It is unclear what impact, if any, the opinion might have other than to rally critics and fuel momentum behind other lawsuits.
Rather, Schwab issued his opinion in response to a criminal case against Honduran illegal immigrant Elionardo Juarez-Escobar,
who was previously deported in 2005 -- and was caught in the U.S. again earlier this year.
