Governor Gets Setback in Fighting Mexico’s Entry Into Lawsuit

Federal appellate judges won’t listen to arguments by Jan Brewer about why they should ignore the views of the Mexican government on the legality of the state’s new immigration law.

In a one-sentence order, judges of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals refused to accept the legal briefs the governor filed through her attorney seeking to undermine arguments by Mexico that judges should not disturb a lower court order blocking the state from enforcing key provisions of Senate Bill 1070. The judges gave no reason for their decision.

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The 9th Circuit has allowed various groups on both sides of the issue to file “friend of the court” briefs as it weighs a plea by Brewer to set aside the injunction issued in July by U.S. District Court Judge Susan Bolton. The Mexican government, in its brief, said allowing Arizona to enforce immigration laws interferes with international relations and undermines the rights of its citizens, legal and otherwise, in the U.S.

Earlier this week, Brewer submitted a response urging the appellate judges to disregard those arguments. She said Mexico’s real interest is “lax enforcement of United States immigration laws and ultimate amnesty for all of the Mexican nationals who are unlawfully present in the United States.”

The new court order means the judges hearing the case next month will have the Mexican legal brief–but not the one countering it from Brewer.

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