Do you remember hearing President Obama brag about his Infinite Powers to use executive orders because he had “a pen and a phone?” Here’s a reminder, with interpretation courtesy of Southpark’s Cartman.

The President just found out that you don’t mess with Texas — or with Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia or Wisconsin, either. These 26 states had issued a lawsuit against Obama’s executive action designed to protect some 5 million illegals from deportation, which he issued in November. The first part of the order was designed to protect young illegals from deportation if they were brought here as children; the second was to protect older adults who had been living illegally in the United States as parents of citizens and permanent residents.

The 26 states had declared the executive order as unconstitutional, and on Tuesday, a 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals by a 2 – 1 ruling refused to reverse a Texas judge’s ruling that temporarily blocked Obama’s plan. It is unclear as to whether the Department of Justice will appeal this ruling.

The Justice Department had originally argued the Texas hold on the order interfered with Homeland Security’s ability to protect the borders (aren’t they doing a great job?), and that immigration policy is a domain of the Feds and not the states.

Think again. Fifth Circuit Court judge Jerry Smith, writing in an opinion, said that government lawyers are unlikely to successfully appeal based on the merit of those arguments. States 1, Feds 0.

What’s that, Mr. President? Your phone is hard to hear out in the heartland. Your call is breaking up. Must be on your end.