Attorney General Adam Laxalt defended his decision to add Nevada to the list of the states suing over President Barack Obama’s immigration order.
Laxalt told KNPR’s State of Nevada that he was defending the rule of law when joined the lawsuit.
“Increasingly our laws are becoming politicized, and from my perspective, a very dangerous level,” Laxalt said.
He believes the president’s move is unconstitutional and an example of the expansion of the federal government’s power over the past several years.
President Obama isn’t the first president to use executive orders to move his agenda forward, the list includes several Republicans. However, Laxalt says he would have the same approach no matter the party affiliation.
“Just because a past president, Republican or Democrat, has done something, doesn’t forgive the style,” Laxalt said.
This week a federal judge in Texas agreed with the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, including Nevada, and temporarily stayed the president’s order, which would have protected thousands of undocumented workers from deportation. The Obama Administration has vowed to fight the judge’s decision.
Laxalt said the judge specifically called out the president’s declaration that he was changing laws.
“Congress has put defined rules on how they want immigration to be and to move forward and he has just single handedly altered those rules and that’s just something he cannot do,” Laxalt said.
One of the biggest criticisms of Laxalt’s move to join the lawsuit was that it ran contradictory to the opinion of his client, Gov. Brian Sandoval, who has said the issue shouldn’t be decided by the courts.
Laxalt would not give details about any conversations he had with the governor, citing attorney-client privilege but he did say, “Our staffs communicated.”
VOTER ID LAWS
This week a bill was introduced in Carson City which would require people to show some form of identification in order to vote. Supporters say it will cut down on voter fraud and detractors say it will hurt low-income and minority voters.
Because of the controversy, if the bill become a law, the Attorney General’s office may have to defend it. Although he personally believes voter ID laws are a good thing, AG Laxalt has not read this bill and doesn’t believe it is a priority for his office, at this point.
“It’s not something on my radar. It’s not something in my current job description,”Laxalt said.
LEGAL SERVICES FOR THE MILITARY
Laxalt is a veteran and a judge advocate general in the Navy. That service has influenced his plans for his office.
The attorney general has launched a new program that connects private attorneys to active-duty military in need of legal help. He said the new service is a “no brainer.”
“Everyone should know, if this is ultimately successful, that they can send people to the Office of Military Legal Assistance at the Attorney General’s office,”
Besides the new program, the attorney general said he is focusing on learning the ropes of the new job and staying out of any political fights.
“My job is to be the top law enforcement officer of the state,” Laxalt said. “I view it as a nonpartisan job.”
Guest:
Adam Laxalt, Nevada Attorney General
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Adam Laxalt, Nevada Attorney General