Jackson Free Press

JACKSON — Gov. Phil Bryant has signed Mississippi onto a federal lawsuit against the Obama administration for the president's recent decision to stop deporting young undocumented immigrants living in the U.S.

In an press release posted on Bryant's website, he said the federal government has ignored the growing problem of illegal immigration.

“I believe this action by the Obama administration is unconstitutional and circumvents Congress’s authority. The fact remains that illegal immigration is a real issue with real consequences, and ignoring the rule of law is irresponsible. As governor, I cannot turn a blind eye to the problem of illegal immigration and its costs to Mississippi," Bryant said.

Bryant said he joined the state's behalf "based on the significant fiscal costs that illegal immigration imposes on the state."

In 2006, then-state Auditor Bryant commissioned a report that concluded undocumented immigrants cost state taxpayers millions of dollars based on "significant education, law enforcement and health care costs, as well as substantial lost tax revenues and other economic losses."

The Mississippi branch of the American Civil Liberties Union denounced Bryant's joining the immigration lawsuit

Nancy Kohsin-Kintigh, the ACLU of Mississippi's program director, said Bryant is "trying to snatch that opportunity away from" young people whom the president's executive order, help achieve the American dream.

"If Gov. Bryant is truly concerned about the economic impact of undocumented immigrants, why would he deny these young people the opportunity to get work permits and become taxpayers?," Kohsin-Kintigh said in a statement.