Senator Ted Cruz (R., Texas) sat with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) before most of the conference arrived for their Tuesday lunch meeting, but the GOP leadership team did not convince him to back the new plan regarding the executive amnesty fight.

“Leadership’s current plan – to pass clean DHS funding and separate legislation barring executive amnesty – is a mistake,” Cruz said in a Tuesday evening statement. “Congress is obliged to use every constitutional check and balance we have to rein in President Obama’s lawlessness, and that includes both our confirmation authority over nominees and the power of the purse.”

Some Republicans want to rely on the judiciary to block President Obama’s recent executive orders pertaining to immigration, especially in light of a federal judge enjoining the program from going forward, but Cruz wants Congress to defend itself.

“The federal court injunction was a major victory for the rule of law, and we need to hold the administration accountable to comply in every respect,” he said.