A federal judge on Monday appeared deeply skeptical of an Arizona sheriff's lawsuit seeking to halt President Barack Obama's plan to spare nearly 5 million people from deportation until after the end of his administration. U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell, herself nominated to the federal bench by Obama in 2010, questioned whether Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio had legal standing to challenge the immigration program the president announced last month. She suggested the topic is better left for Congress and the Obama administration to sort out. But Arpaio's lawyer, Larry Klayman, told reporters outside the courtroom that 'we have serious issues of constitutionality involved.'
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America's 'toughest sheriff' wants to force Washington to stop the flow of illegal-immigrants criminals into his southern Arizona county
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Sheriff Joe Arpaio aims to stop new Obama executive actions that will guarantee millions of immigration lawbreakers a free pass from deportation
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A federal judge is skeptical that the sheriff has 'standing' to sue since his law enforcement agency hasn't yet seen the effects of the new policy
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The judge, Beryll Howell, was appointed by Obama in 2010
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Lawsuit hopes to prove the White House did an end-run around Congress and seized lawmaking power that belongs to federal legislators
When @placeholder said his client has been threatened because of his tough views on Obama's immigration policy, Howell responded: 'That just doesn't cut it for me.'