WASHINGTON—Today, Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) issued the following statement after a three-judge panel of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals denied President Obama’s request to begin implementing his executive amnesty program.

“The Fifth Circuit should be commended for its well-reasoned decision to prevent President Obama from implementing his lawless executive amnesty program,” Lee said. “Our immigration system is in desperate need of reform. But that reform must be agreed to and passed by Congress, not unilaterally imposed on the American people by the executive branch."