Today marks three years since attorney general and Republican candidate for governor Adam Laxalt added Nevada to a lawsuit challenging Pres. Obama’s executive action on immigration, with the goal of exposing five million undocumented immigrants to deportation. Fast forward three years to today, and Laxalt has yet to clearly state his immigration platform, as the fates of thousands of Nevada DACA recipients hangs in the balance.
Laxalt’s move went against the wishes of his fellow Republican, Gov. Brian Sandoval. Sandoval distanced himself from Laxalt’s move to join the partisan lawsuit, saying through a spokesperson that “he continues to believe that the best course of action is a legislative solution rather than legal action.”
Laxalt continues to push a divisive anti-immigrant agenda as he seeks the governor’s office:
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Last July, Laxalt introduced U.S. Attorney General and noted immigration hawk Jeff Sessions at an event in Nevada. Laxalt “endorsed the Trump administration’s hard-line approach to immigration.”
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In September, Laxalt failed to join his fellow state attorneys general in a lawsuit over Trump’s decision to terminate DACA, instead remaining silent.
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Laxalt was absent from a state attorneys general letter urging Congress to swiftly pass a clean DREAM Act in the wake of Trump’s decision to end DACA, despite the fact that Sandoval joined a similar governors’ letter last month.
Nevada State Democratic Party spokesperson Helen Kalla released the following statement:
“While 13,000 Nevadans worry that their families may be ripped apart any day thanks to Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress, we are reminded today that Adam Laxalt has been on the wrong side of this issue his entire short Nevada political career. He has repeatedly clashed with Republican Gov. Sandoval on immigration, proving that Laxalt would drag our state too far to the right. Nevada is proud of our diverse, rich heritage, and Laxalt’s extreme views make him the wrong choice to lead our state.”
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