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WASHINGTON – Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., today voted against a long-term funding bill for the Department of Homeland Security. The House passed the legislation by a vote of 257 to 167.

“Unfortunately, this legislation does nothing to prevent President Obama’s unlawful plans to grant amnesty to millions of illegal aliens through executive actions, which undermine our system of checks and balances. While House Republicans made good-faith efforts to resolve the situation, Senate Democrats and the president refused to contribute to finding a solution,” said Foxx. “Now, the fight against the president’s blatant overreach of his Constitutionally-granted executive authority will be litigated in the courts. I will continue to work tirelessly to hold the president accountable for his utter disregard of the law and the will of the American people.”

On Jan. 14, the House passed legislation to fund the Department of Homeland Security for the remainder of fiscal year 2015 that included amendments specifically designed to stop President Obama’s executive amnesty. However, Senate Democrats, many of whom have publicly opposed the president’s actions on immigration, stood in the way of a vote on the House-passed bill and instead voted to strip the House amendments from the legislation and allow President Obama to act unilaterally on immigration.  

In order to allow formal discussions with the Senate to commence and to continue funding the national security functions of the Department of Homeland Security, the House voted last week to temporarily extend funding for the department for one week. On Monday Senate Democrats blocked a measure that would have begun negotiations between both chambers.

In December, Foxx signed on to an amicus brief in support of a lawsuit by 26 states, including North Carolina, which sought an injunction against President Obama’s unilateral executive actions on immigration. That injunction was granted on Feb. 16 by a U.S. District Court Judge in Texas.

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U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx represents North Carolina’s 5th Congressional District and is the elected Republican Conference Secretary. Dr. Foxx is the chair of the House Education and the Workforce Subcommittee on Higher Education and serves as Vice Chair of the House Rules Committee.