Why do feds insist on being in charge of the immigration issue?

As governor of New Mexico, I spent eight years dealing with issues unique and specific to our state — addressing immigration, education, the privatization of our prison system, ways to streamline state agencies and keeping our spending under control. During those eight years, we proved that, with a little common sense and by embracing the reality that government is not the answer to every question, spending can be controlled, bureaucracy can be reduced, and individuals can manage their own lives.

Last December, after growing not just alarmed but angry at the direction of the current government in Washington, we launched the Our America Initiative to help give voice to those same ideas I put to work in New Mexico. Since then I've been traveling around the country, visiting a total of 23 states so far. During these travels, I've realized more than ever that not only are Americans ready for a very different direction but that each of the 50 states must deal with its own unique set of challenges, needs and priorities.

As a nation, we've all been hearing a lot about states' rights lately, particularly in the context of Arizona's immigration reform law, and the Obama administration's very bad decision to challenge that state law in court.

I have said that I would not have signed the Arizona immigration law because I'm concerned it could lead to racial profiling. But, having served as governor of another border state, I empathize with Arizona's frustration and absolutely support the prerogative of that state's officials to act. Congress and the federal government have failed, due to political cowardice, to do anything meaningful about immigration reform; yet when a desperate border state does decide to do something the feds go running to court claiming Arizona is trying to usurp their authority.

The situation in Arizona is a crystallizing example of how the federal government has taken the very limited authority granted it by the Constitution and expanded that authority to make a mockery of states' rights and primacy. How many times have we heard in the weeks since the Arizona law was enacted that "Immigration is a federal issue?" Certainly, securing our border and managing the flow of people across that border is an appropriate federal role consistent with the Constitution. But, where is it written in the founding documents that a state doesn't have the right to enact its own laws and policies relating to immigrants, both legal and illegal, who choose to enter and reside in that state?