OKLAHOMA CITY – A recent communication by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) supports Attorney General Gentner Drummond’s contention that the nation’s border crisis underscores the need for Oklahoma’s tough immigration reform law.
That measure, House Bill 4156, was signed into law last year but paused in June – just days before it was to take effect – when the Biden Administration’s DOJ successfully persuaded a federal judge to issue a preliminary injunction. Drummond has appealed that decision to the federal appellate court.
A Jan. 23 letter from the Justice Department to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit cites a proclamation by President Trump that “the current situation at the southern border qualifies as an invasion under Article IV, Section 4 of the Constitution of the United States.”
As a result, the DOJ indicated it is assessing how the proclamation affects the case surrounding HB 4156.
“President Trump is committed to securing the border and enforcing immigration laws, which is a welcome change from the Biden Administration’s open-border policy,” Drummond said. “The nation’s porous border under the Biden Administration posed a direct threat to public safety in Oklahoma, so we acted to protect our people. The recent letter from the Justice Department makes clear that our position is correct, and I am encouraged that soon we will be able to enforce HB 4156. This law is critical in our efforts to stamp out the pestilence of illegal marijuana grows and their associated criminal activities.”
Enacted after Drummond worked with legislative leaders to craft the bill, HB 4156 is designed to crack down on the state’s illegal marijuana farms by enabling state law enforcement to detain and incarcerate illegal immigrants, many of whom wind up working in these clandestine operations.
Read the letter.
