Democrats on the Harris County Commissioners Court voted to give the county attorney the authority to file lawsuits or join existing lawsuits against President Donald Trump’s executive actions without needing to wait for a vote of approval by the commissioners.
Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee requested authority to take legal action without court approval for a six-month period with the option to request a renewal. Menefee argued that he could not wait for court approval “given the sudden nature of these orders and the exigency of taking legal action.”
The motion to empower Menefee passed in a 3-1 vote with the only Republican on the court, Commissioner Tom Ramsey, voting against.
The approved motion reads:
Request for approval of an order authorizing the County Attorney, for a period of six months, to file litigation against the federal government and its officers challenging the Executive Orders issued by President Donald J. Trump and any associated rules or regulations that may impact Harris County.
Last month, Menefee and Commissioner Adrian Garcia (D) joined a lawsuit by leftwing activists and Democrat-led states to block Trump’s executive action to prevent the children of illegal aliens from receiving automatic U.S. citizenship for being born here.
In a video posted to X, Menefee said, “If you are born on U.S. soil, you are a U.S. citizen. Full stop.”
Texas Scorecard previously asked Ramsey’s office about his opinion on Harris County challenging Trump’s executive actions.
“I do not support random litigation against President Trump or anyone else,” wrote Ramsey. “It’s a waste of time, money, and effort when there could be meaningful discussions for change instead.”
