Two Republicans broke from their party Wednesday night and voted against an amendment to stop the Justice Department from pursuing their lawsuit against Arizona’s immigration law.

Senators Mike Johanns of Nebraska and George Voinovich of Ohio were the only two Republicans to vote against the amendment sponsored by Senators Jim DeMint (R.-S.C.) and David Vitter (R.-La.). The measure was defeated on a 43-55 vote.

Johanns told HUMAN EVENTS he supports the right of our cities and states to take good faith action to protect their citizens and staunchly advocates stemming the tide of illegal immigration.

“But I could not support this congressional overreach,” said Johanns. “I am concerned with the precedent this could set for congressional intervention in Justice Department decision making. For instance, if in the future the Justice Department sues a sanctuary city for flouting immigration laws, what’s to stop Congress from defunding that lawsuit based on this precedent?” Read more...