RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein is joining 16 other attorneys general in opposing the Trump administration's immigration ban.
Stein's office said in a news release Tuesday it supports the efforts by the states of Washington and Minnesota in fighting the ban.
Stein said the president's executive order undermines a core American value of religious tolerance and will make the country less safe. Stein says he considers President Trump's order unconstitutional.
Republicans in the state immediately criticized Stein. A statement from the GOP state party Tuesday said Stein's position would weaken American's national defenses.
State Party Chairman Robin Hayes and executive director Dallas Woodhouse planned to meet with reporters later Tuesday to discuss the attorney general's move.
A hearing on the state's lawsuit was scheduled in San Francisco later Tuesday.