Article IV, Section 4 of the U.S. Constitution

"The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against invasion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic Violence."

Unfortunately, efforts of states to recoup costs resulting from the current invasion of illegal aliens have so far failed. An Arizona case on this matter was rejected in 1997. The Arizona Republic article Justices reject state bid to recoup costs of illegals, Oct. 7, 1997 states:

Arizona officials filed the lawsuit in 1994 to recover more than $121 million that they said the state was owed for illegal immigrants serving time in prison...

The Supreme Court on Monday refused to consider arguments that the U.S. government must pay up because it has failed to meet its constitutional obligation to protect states from an "invasion" of illegal border crossers...

"Although the federal government may have the luxury of abdicating its constitutional duty to protect Arizona's borders, Arizona cannot solve the problems that this abdication causes by following the federal government's example and abdicating its duty to prosecute and incarcerate illegal aliens who commit felonies within Arizona's unprotected borders," Arizona argued in its high court appeal.

An October 7, 1997 LA Times article Court Rejects Claim That U.S. Is Liable for Immigrant Costs states:

The lawsuit cited Article 4 of the Constitution, which says that the United States "shall protect each of [the states] against invasion." But U.S. District Judge Judith Keep in San Diego and the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco threw out the lawsuit on grounds that California and Arizona are not being "invaded" by a hostile, foreign power.

The issue of who pays... is a political issue, not a legal one, they said.

It is abundantly clear that our politicans lack the will to honor our Constitution. We encourage you to ask your public officials, who are sworn to uphold the Constitution:

if they support this provision;
what they plan to do to ensure implementation of this provision;
and then hold them to their commitment.


	Home Immigration Cartoons Slide Show Article IV Section 4 Links About	Article IV, Section 4 of the U.S. Constitution "The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against invasion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic Violence." Unfortunately, efforts of states to recoup costs resulting from the current invasion of illegal aliens have so far failed. An Arizona case on this matter was rejected in 1997. The Arizona Republic article Justices reject state bid to recoup costs of illegals, Oct. 7, 1997 states: Arizona officials filed the lawsuit in 1994 to recover more than $121 million that they said the state was owed for illegal immigrants serving time in prison... The Supreme Court on Monday refused to consider arguments that the U.S. government must pay up because it has failed to meet its constitutional obligation to protect states from an "invasion" of illegal border crossers... "Although the federal government may have the luxury of abdicating its constitutional duty to protect Arizona's borders, Arizona cannot solve the problems that this abdication causes by following the federal government's example and abdicating its duty to prosecute and incarcerate illegal aliens who commit felonies within Arizona's unprotected borders," Arizona argued in its high court appeal. An October 7, 1997 LA Times article Court Rejects Claim That U.S. Is Liable for Immigrant Costs states: The lawsuit cited Article 4 of the Constitution, which says that the United States "shall protect each of [the states] against invasion." But U.S. District Judge Judith Keep in San Diego and the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco threw out the lawsuit on grounds that California and Arizona are not being "invaded" by a hostile, foreign power. The issue of who pays... is a political issue, not a legal one, they said. It is abundantly clear that our politicans lack the will to honor our Constitution. We encourage you to ask your public officials, who are sworn to uphold the Constitution: if they support this provision; what they plan to do to ensure implementation of this provision; and then hold them to their commitment.