Texas Governor-elect Gregg Abbott disclosed on Wednesday that his state, along with 16 others, had filed a lawsuit against President Barack Obama and his administration over changes to the immigration system. 'The president’s unilateral executive action tramples the U.S. Constitution’s Take Care Clause and federal law,' Abbott said in a statement today. Joining Texas in the lawsuit are  Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, West Virginia and Wisconsin. The formal announcement of the lawsuit followed numerous threats from Abbott and other GOP governors to take Obama to court in response to his recently issued immigration memorandums and comes just two days before Abbott is scheduled to meet with Obama at the White House on another matter. Texas Attorney General and Gov.-elect Greg Abbott speaks against President Barack Obama's executive actions on immigration last month in Austin, Texas. Abbott formally announced his state's lawsuit against the president today over his immigration actions . Texas' current governor, Rick Perry and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker have been saying since the day the president announced his decision to defer deportation for nearly 5 million immigrants that their states would consider suing Obama, and Abbott followed up Obama's proclamation with a threat of his own. 'President Obama has circumvented Congress and deliberately bypassed the will of the American people, eroding the very foundation of our nation’s Constitution and bestowing a legacy of lawlessness,' Abbott said in a statement at the time. Today he decried Obama for taking actions that 'directly violate the fundamental promise to the American people' to abide by the Constitution. 'The ability of the president to dispense with laws was specifically considered and unanimously rejected at the Constitutional Convention,' Abbott stated, according to Fox News. The legal arguments laid out in the suit are the violation of Article 2, Section 3 of the Constitution, which states that the president 'shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed. It also claims that at shift in federal policy will 'exacerbate the humanitarian crisis along the southern border, which will affect increased state investment in law enforcement, health care and education.' Outgoing Texas Gov. Rick Perry said at a conference last month that it costs his state roughly $12 million to defend the U.S. border with Mexico, which overlaps substantially with the Texas border. At a presser today separate from Abbott's, Perry said, 'In effect, [Obama's] action placed a neon sign on our border, assuring people that they could ignore the law of the United States.' Today's announcement to sue over the issue was not unexpected as Abbott had said on Monday that the lawsuit would formally be filed 'any day now.' 'We are dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s,' he said on Fox News program On the Record with Greta Van Susteren. The president's orders would give green cards and work permits to qualifying illegal immigrants if they pass a background check and would allow them to stay in the U.S. indefinitely without the threat of removal. 'In effect, [Obama's] action placed a neon sign on our border, assuring people that they could ignore the law of the United States,' outgoing Texas Gov. Rick Perry said today during a presser . Abbot said on Monday that Obama doesn't have the authority to do that, though. 'While the president or his attorneys may have the discretion whether or not to prosecute someone, they don’t have the authority to give rights to people they are not prosecuting and put burdens on other agencies to carry out all these orders so this is, as you know, far from prosecutorial discretion,' he said. Insisting that the lawsuit is not about his ideological opposition to the Democratic president, Abbott said Monday, 'I think it’s extremely important to emphasize that I am addressing this as a legal issue, not a political issue. 'The president has crossed the line from politics to endangering the constitutional structure,' the Republican politician said, per the Austin American-Statesman. Abbott has already sued Obama 30 times before today while serving as attorney general of the Lone Star State, with the new lawsuit making 31 times. On Friday he'll have the distinct honor of meeting the very man he's sued so often at the White House in Washington, D.C. He'll join a handful of other recently elected governors there for a meeting on the economy. His frequent lawsuits could make his encounter with the nation's leader quite, awkward, however, even though he insists that . Immigration Executive Order Lawsuit uploaded by MailOnline .
Incoming Texas governor Greg Abbott made the announcement at a press conference today .
Lawsuit was expected, with Abbott saying Monday he would make a formal announcement 'any day now'
Abbott will meet with President Barack Obama and other newly elected governors the White House on Friday to discuss the economy .
Texas Governor-elect Gregg Abbott disclosed on Wednesday that his state, along with 16 others, had filed a lawsuit against President Barack Obama and his administration over changes to the immigration system. 'The president’s unilateral executive action tramples the U.S. Constitution’s Take Care Clause and federal law,' Abbott said in a statement today. Joining Texas in the lawsuit are  Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, West Virginia and Wisconsin. The formal announcement of the lawsuit followed numerous threats from Abbott and other GOP governors to take Obama to court in response to his recently issued immigration memorandums and comes just two days before Abbott is scheduled to meet with Obama at the White House on another matter. Texas Attorney General and Gov.-elect Greg Abbott speaks against President Barack Obama's executive actions on immigration last month in Austin, Texas. Abbott formally announced his state's lawsuit against the president today over his immigration actions . Texas' current governor, Rick Perry and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker have been saying since the day the president announced his decision to defer deportation for nearly 5 million immigrants that their states would consider suing Obama, and Abbott followed up Obama's proclamation with a threat of his own. 'President Obama has circumvented Congress and deliberately bypassed the will of the American people, eroding the very foundation of our nation’s Constitution and bestowing a legacy of lawlessness,' Abbott said in a statement at the time. Today he decried Obama for taking actions that 'directly violate the fundamental promise to the American people' to abide by the Constitution. 'The ability of the president to dispense with laws was specifically considered and unanimously rejected at the Constitutional Convention,' Abbott stated, according to Fox News. The legal arguments laid out in the suit are the violation of Article 2, Section 3 of the Constitution, which states that the president 'shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed. It also claims that at shift in federal policy will 'exacerbate the humanitarian crisis along the southern border, which will affect increased state investment in law enforcement, health care and education.' Outgoing Texas Gov. Rick Perry said at a conference last month that it costs his state roughly $12 million to defend the U.S. border with Mexico, which overlaps substantially with the Texas border. At a presser today separate from Abbott's, Perry said, 'In effect, [Obama's] action placed a neon sign on our border, assuring people that they could ignore the law of the United States.' Today's announcement to sue over the issue was not unexpected as Abbott had said on Monday that the lawsuit would formally be filed 'any day now.' 'We are dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s,' he said on Fox News program On the Record with Greta Van Susteren. The president's orders would give green cards and work permits to qualifying illegal immigrants if they pass a background check and would allow them to stay in the U.S. indefinitely without the threat of removal. 'In effect, [Obama's] action placed a neon sign on our border, assuring people that they could ignore the law of the United States,' outgoing Texas Gov. Rick Perry said today during a presser . Abbot said on Monday that Obama doesn't have the authority to do that, though. 'While the president or his attorneys may have the discretion whether or not to prosecute someone, they don’t have the authority to give rights to people they are not prosecuting and put burdens on other agencies to carry out all these orders so this is, as you know, far from prosecutorial discretion,' he said. Insisting that the lawsuit is not about his ideological opposition to the Democratic president, Abbott said Monday, 'I think it’s extremely important to emphasize that I am addressing this as a legal issue, not a political issue. 'The president has crossed the line from politics to endangering the constitutional structure,' the Republican politician said, per the Austin American-Statesman. Abbott has already sued Obama 30 times before today while serving as attorney general of the Lone Star State, with the new lawsuit making 31 times. On Friday he'll have the distinct honor of meeting the very man he's sued so often at the White House in Washington, D.C. He'll join a handful of other recently elected governors there for a meeting on the economy. His frequent lawsuits could make his encounter with the nation's leader quite, awkward, however, even though he insists that . Immigration Executive Order Lawsuit uploaded by MailOnline .
had filed a lawsuit against President Barack threats from Abbott and other GOP governors to days before Abbott is scheduled to meet with Obama at the White House on another matter. Texas Attorney General and Gov.-elect Greg Abbott lawsuit would formally be filed 'any day now.'