In response to a question by Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), “Who has more right to a job in this country? A lawful immigrant who’s here, or citizen—or a person who entered the country unlawfully?” Lynch provided an astounding reply that demonstrates that she is either appallingly ignorant of the law or, like her predecessor Eric Holder and her prospective boss President Obama, has absolutely no regard for the law.
“I believe that the right and the obligation to work is one that’s shared by everyone in this country regardless of how they came here. And certainly, if someone is here, regardless of status, I would prefer that they would be participating in the workplace than not participating in the workplace,” Lynch answered.
Regardless of what Lynch believes, the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA), explicitly prohibits illegal aliens from being employed in the United States. The absolutely undeniable intent of IRCA was to protect American workers from competition from illegal aliens and to end the incentive for illegal immigration by preventing them from “participating in the workplace.”
Lynch’s words, and the policies of the administration she hopes to serve, should be chilling to anyone who believes in the rule of law and limits to executive power. If presidents and their political appointees can brazenly assert the right to carry out policies based on what they believe, rather than on what is explicitly stated in the law, then we are no longer a constitutional republic.