Two more states have joined a multi-state coalition to sue President Barack Obama's latest immigration executive actions.

In a statement released by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, Nevada and Tennessee will join 24 other states in a lawsuit to stop Obama's "illegal attempt" to have approximately 4.9 million eligible undocumented immigrants temporarily avoid deportation.

"Texas is proud to lead a coalition that now includes a majority of the United States standing up against the President's rogue actions," Attorney General Ken Paxton said about the lawsuit originally created by former Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, who is now governor of the Lone Star State.

"The momentum against the President's lawlessness continues to build with Tennessee and Nevada joining the effort to protect our states from the economic and public safety implications of illegal amnesty. As President Obama himself has said numerous times, he lacks the authority to impose amnesty. His actions represent a blatant case of overreach and clear abuse of power."

Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery said his office "carefully considered" to join the lawsuit. He added Tennessee's inclusion is for the state's best interest. Slatery claimed Obama's executive actions of Nov. 20, 2014, were not about immigration.

"It is really more about the rule of law and the limitations that prevent the executive branch from taking over a role constitutionally reserved for Congress. The executive directives issued by the White House and Homeland Security conflict with existing federal law. They replace prosecutorial discretion, normally determined on a case by case basis, with a unilateral nonenforcement policy protecting over 4 million people," Slatery in a statement said.

The Tennessee attorney general added Congress could resolve all immigration-related issues, notably the concerns addressed in the lawsuit, by enacting a "timely" legislation.

In Nevada, U.S. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid opposed the lawsuit and claimed Obama acted within his legal authority. He said, "This is embarrassing. No other state in the country will benefit more from President Obama's executive actions than Nevada. The irresponsible decision to join a lawsuit that will cause family separation is harmful to our communities."

Reid said U.S. presidents dating back to Dwight Eisenhower have used their executive authority to improve the immigration system.

"There is no question we need a permanent solution to fix our broken system; I wish Republicans would focus their efforts on passing comprehensive legislation rather than baseless lawsuits that hurt Nevada families," Reid said.

Among Latinos, immigration has consistently been a top-three issue along with the economy and education. In Tennessee, the Latino population was recorded at 4.9 percent. For Nevada, especially, the Latino population is higher than the U.S. average -- 27.5 percent to 17.1 percent, respectively -- according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

As Pew Research Center noted, Latinos comprised a growing share of the voting electorate during the 2012 presidential election. Nevada, considered as a battleground state, the Latino voting bloc increased from the 15 percent in 2008 to 18 percent for 2012, which benefited Obama's 70 percent to 25 percent win among Latinos.

The 26 states in the lawsuit against the immigration executive actions are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wisconsin.

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For the latest updates, follow Latin Post's Michael Oleaga on Twitter: @EditorMikeO or contact via email: m.oleaga@latinpost.com.

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