After messing around with mundane issues so far this year, the Arizona GOP has finally brought forth something meaningful, immigration.
Immigration however is not an issue that is even near the top of Governor Janet Napolitano's list, though it is probably the top issue facing that state that touches every part of everyday living from education to health care to crime to congestion. In my opinion that is pure incompetence. For the governor of a border state to ignore such a large issue is on par with the incompetence of President Bush ignoring the federal immigration laws.
What does Governor Janet Napolitano consider important regarding immigration? Car theft. In her budget for this year regarding immigration, Napolitano gave a whopping $5 million to police departments in order to crack down on vehicle thefts near the border. That's about it. There's no other issues that Janet Napolitano found more important regarding immigration than car theft.
East Valley Tribune
Republican lawmakers plan to renew their efforts this week to clamp down on businesses that knowingly hire undocumented workers, invest in technology that would increase security along the border and give police agencies more money to enforce immigration laws.
Rep. Russell Pearce, R- Mesa, who has become one of the state’s leading advocates for immigration reform, said his focus remains on passing laws that penalize employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants.
“Disneyland learned a long time ago, when you shut down the rides, the people want to go home,” Pearce said.
House Republicans have made the immigration-related measures part of their official agenda for the 2007 session, following up on a year in which the GOP pushed through a series of immigration bills only to see them fall under Gov. Janet Napolitano’s veto axe.
Voters later approved four ballot measures that dealt with illegal immigration — two of which had been vetoed by the governor.
Before you start thinking the Arizona GOP is logical though on immigration, remember this quote from House Speaker Jim Weiers from back in November
House Speaker Jim Weiers said Republicans intend to pursue border security measures. And he said the GOP also is willing to pursue employer sanctions if they can be enacted in a fair manner -- and if it can also gain the blessing of the business community.
That's right, the GOP is looking for the blessing of businesses who benefit from illegal alien labor before they actually do anything. Why don't we just ask the thief if they would allow us to prosecute them after they've taken our wallet.
So, what are the Arizona Democrats proposing? Rep. Kyrsten Sinema of Phoenix is introducing a bill stopping prosecutors from issuing charges of human smuggling on illegal immigrants who are brought into the country.
Good to see the Dems are still working towards open borders so illegal aliens can continue to rape and pillage from their constituents.
