Brazen overreach of Obama forces state leaders to get tough

'The brazen nature of this administration is undermining the basic rule of law, the confidence of the public, and taking away states' authority—creating an ever stronger federal government. My role is to make clear we're not going to put up with this."

So says Bill McCollum, Florida's attorney general, now vying to be governor of the Sunshine State. It wasn't so very long ago that the job of a Republican governor was to promise lower spending, policies to encourage job growth, freedom in education, tax relief.

In the age of Obama, Republican governors and candidates are redefining their role to become defenders in chief against an overweening federal government that is siphoning away states' power and crushing them with new costs.

That's why 20 states are suing for the constitutional overthrow of ObamaCare. It's why Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal threw in with a lawsuit to kill the federal drilling moratorium. It's why Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer is challenging federal immigration policies. It's why 18 governors in March signed a letter demanding the Senate protect their states against EPA climate rules.

Democratic governors, too, have felt compelled to protect their citizens. The EPA letter was signed by West Virginia's Joe Manchin and Kentucky's Steve Beshear. Oklahoma's Brad Henry is scoring the administration for its "net neutrality" policies. Montana's Brian Schweitzer and Wyoming's Dave Freudenthal both signed laws curtailing federal power over firearms.