In late April, Arizona governor Jan Brewer signed into law one of the, if not the most, stringent laws on immigration in this country; a law that several communities and states are considering adapting. The key point of the law is that the word illegal in illegal immigration means enforcement. Many against the law decry broader powers with law enforcement to question people that they suspect as being undocumented. Many bemoaned that police would be racially profiling, therefore civil liberties are in danger.
[SB 1070s]
But the question is this: Is Arizona doing what the Federal Government wouldn’t? Several sections in Arizona’s Immigration Law actually use and refer to Federal statutes within the United States Code.
The legal scholars we spoke with told us to take a close look at two key sections of Title 8 of the U.S. Code. Section 1304e requires that "every alien, eighteen years of age and over, shall at all times carry with him and have in his personal possession any certificate of alien registration or alien registration receipt card issued to him." Those who fail to comply will be guilty of a misdemeanor and will be fined $100 and can be imprisoned up to 30 days.
Section 1306a says that, "Any alien required to apply for registration and to be fingerprinted in the United States who willfully fails or refuses to make such application or to be fingerprinted, and any parent or legal guardian required to apply for the registration of any alien who willfully fails or refuses to file application for the registration of such alien shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall, upon conviction thereof, be fined not to exceed $1,000 or be imprisoned not more than six months, or both."
What many are failing to neglect — just as people forget that 11 lives were lost during the explosion that caused a rupture on the oil pipeline in the Gulf — is why this law was needed. Is Arizona worried undocumented workers? Financial troubles? No. Too many crimes are being committed by illegal immigrants for the Arizona government to sit idle. Arizona had asked for Federal help before passing the law, which fell on deaf ears.
Arizona took matters into their own hands. They actually enforced the "illegal" part in illegal immigration and gave police broader powers to enforce the law. Once they did, the Federal government stirred from their slumber with their rusty sword and wooden shield. Unfortunately, it was to react to Arizona’s Immigration law rather than comprehensive national immigration reform that deals with illegal immigration.
In late March, Robert Krentz, a rancher along the Arizona-Mexican boarder was found dead. Murder by an illegal immigrant was suspected. The family released a statement:
“We hold no malice towards the Mexican people for this senseless act but do hold the political forces in this country and Mexico accountable for what has happened,” the family said. “Their disregard of our repeated pleas and warnings of impending violence towards our community fell on deaf ears shrouded in political correctness. As a result, we have paid the ultimate price for their negligence in credibly securing our borderlands.”
The murder, in large part, caused the Arizona state government to act — I know, a governmental body that actually reacts to protect their citizens, physically, mentally and financially without being all up in your face about it? The Pinal County Sheriff echoed concerns about illegal immigrants.
“We’ve had numerous officers that have been killed by illegal immigrants in Arizona,” Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu said Monday at a Capitol Hill news conference. “And that shouldn’t happen one time.”
The ACLU issued "travel advisories" to anyone traveling to Arizona during the Fourth of July Weekend. Executive Director Anthony D. Romero writes on the organization’s website:
"ACLU affiliates across the country are issuing these alerts because it is imperative that individuals understand their rights before traveling in Arizona. Under Arizona’s racial profiling law, people who look ‘foreign’ are more likely to be stopped for minor infractions and then asked for their ‘papers’ if police believe, based on their appearance or accent, that they could be in the country unlawfully. We hope the alerts provide people with some measure of protection from illegal harassment from law enforcement and inform them of their rights should they encounter it."
Through all of this, the Federal government, the entity whose duty it is to protect American borders reacts by trying to file a lawsuit against Arizona, who only wants to protect herself. Protestors gather around the nation — protestors that are unlikely to have actually been affected by the dangers illegal immigration in Arizona. You even have to wonder if they’ve stepped foot in the state.
President Barack Hussein Obama said:
“I’m ready to move forward, the majority of Democrats are ready to move forward, and I believe the majority of Americans are ready to move forward. But the fact is without bipartisan support, as we had just a few years ago, we cannot solve this problem."
Five bucks to anyone that can correctly point out the topic he’s talking about. Is this the card he uses when giving a speech on everything? The quote comes from a speech in front of a 250 immigration-rights advocates at American University in Washington. But I wouldn’t be so willing to believe that Americans are "ready to move forward" with Obama in the lead. It’s rarely an occurrence these days that Obama speaks for even a majority of Americans. As a result of the Federal government’s offensive against Arizona’s immigration law — you know, the law that the Federal government also has in the United States Code — Arizona is forced to spend $250,000 of tax dollars to help clean up the state’s immigration image, due to lowering tourism and businesses being affected. You can thank the Federal government’s blatant disregard of its own laws for this.
Again, Obama and the Democrats in charge of the Federal Government worries more about people that are in-state illegally than they are their own American citizens. Look at the eventually rising costs of energy services thanks to a ladder to recoup costs once the energy companies are exponentially taxed in Gas-and-Tax. Gas prices will rise. Travel and tourism will decline because it makes more economic sense for families to refuse the punishment from energy companies who are in-turn punished by the Federal Government. Furthermore, added taxes on companies will surely cost jobs and one report shows that over 125,000 jobs were lost in June. Not a good time to implement policies that will cost even more jobs.
Juan Leonardo Qunitero was charged with molesting a 12-year old girl. Deported in 1999 as an illegal, he returned in 2006.
Rodney Johnson was a 12-year veteran on the Houston police force. Married with five children, he was big, kind-hearted and unafraid of working the toughest gang beats or late-night shifts.
On Thursday, Sept. 21, around 5:30 p.m., he pulled over a white Ford pickup driving 50 mph in a 30 mph zone in what should have been a routine traffic stop. The driver, Quintero, had neither a driver’s license nor any other identification so, after a pat down, Johnson handcuffed him and placed him in the back of his patrol car. But Johnson missed the gun in Quintero’s waistband. The prisoner pulled it out and fired four times at Johnson at close range.
The story continues, deaths caused by illegal immigrants. This is what the Democrats are trying to protect, and what the Republicans indirectly failed to address. Inaction by reaction to a law that makes sense for a state in a warzone is self-defeating. No, it’s depressing to learn that through all of this time, our Federal government’s stance to not get involved with America’s protection while people die is appalling; considering that one likely refusal to address the issue is the fear of upsetting the latino vote.
When people throw political arguments against the wall hoping that it makes sense to some half-wit, they forget that born out of this is the death of good people, the destruction of whole families, all because the immigration vote is worth more than the lives of Americans. This is Obama’s change. And this is why we’ll see a lot of change in 2010 and 2012.
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