AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The slogan goes, "Don't Mess With Texas." But with President Barack Obama in the White House a more appropriate cry might be: "Try it and we'll sue."
The Texas attorney general's office has filed 24 lawsuits against the federal government since Obama took office — litigation that has cost the state $2.58 million and more than 14,113 hours spent by staff and state lawyers working those cases.
....Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott said the costs are worth it, calling the litigation "a fight against the unprecedented ideology coming from the Obama administration." In an interview, he said the legal battles he wages are meant to promote industry and protect Texas jobs.
Abbott took office in 2002 and sued the federal government three times between 2004 and 2007 while fellow Republican George W. Bush was president. But the floodgates opened under Obama, with Texas suing two dozen times since 2010. Sixteen of Abbott's lawsuits challenged environmental regulations.
....Texas has won five of Abbott's 27 cases, lost eight and had two others dismissed because the regulations or laws being challenged were lifted or repealed by Congress. The other 12 are pending.....
(Excerpt) Read more at chron.com ...
