It’s official: Arizona has become the new target of the liberal bloc. The Obama Administration and several liberal activist groups have taken a break from mocking the tea party movement, and have focused their attention on the state of Arizona.
The state’s newest illegal immigration law demands proper immigration documentation, illegalizes the transport of illegal immigrants and prohibits people from blocking traffic as they try to solicit work. So why are so many radicals boycotting Arizona?
Aside from questioning its constitutionality, liberal spin-doctors have twisted this immigration law into a racial controversy in hopes of fostering a stronger political following. After all, the race card has been effective in gaining Democratic support for other issues. Why not try it now? According to these folks, the new law steps on the toes of the federal government and encourages racial profiling.
This would be an excellent argument … that is, if it were actually valid.
The truth is, President Obama knows Arizona has not broken any federal laws. Although he has severely scolded the state for taking this recent action, he really can’t do anything about it. Aside from 10th Amendment protection, Plyer v. Doe (1982) affirmed the states ability to deter the influx of persons entering the United States against federal law. If Arizona had done anything legally inappropriate, the Obama Administration would have immediately denounced it as unconstitutional. Instead, Attorney General Eric Holder claims that the Justice Department is still “considering all of our options.” In other words, the Obama Administration is stalling for its own federal immigration legislation to make its way through Congress.
Many argue that the local police should not be burdened with the responsibilities of federal law. However, the inactivity of the federal government has given the state no choice but to take matters into their own hands. Several Arizona citizens have been brutally murdered by illegal immigrants, the kidnapping rate has skyrocketed and drug use has dramatically increased. Sorry, but I thought the purpose of local law enforcement was to maintain and encourage a safe environment for its citizens.
Opponents of this law neglect to understand the infeasibility of Arizona police using racial profiling to control immigration. With Hispanics making up over 30 percent of Arizona’s population, it would be impossible to pull over every Hispanic driver. As a result, the bill would only target those that were acting blatantly suspicious.
Even Sen. Harry Reid admits that “the system is broken” when it comes to illegal immigration policy. However, the liberal-supported policy of amnesty to illegal immigrants is no policy, and has no element of sustainability. In 1986, over 2.7 million immigrants were granted amnesty. Statistics show this only encouraged more to cross the border. National illegal immigration policy has failed, and Arizona has stepped up to the plate.
Obama said Arizona’s new legislation threatens to “undermine basic notions of fairness that we cherish as Americans.” But tell me, is it fair that so many illegal immigrants reap the social benefits of our government? Or is it fair that many of our own citizens get rejected to our state universities year after year in favor of students from illegal immigrant families?
We often generalize that all illegal immigrants are taking on the unskilled jobs that Americans don’t want. Yet Jeffrey Passell, a demographer at Pew Hispanic Center estimates that “20 percent of cooks … and about 14 percent of all workers in the construction industry are in the United States illegally.” I know plenty of unemployed Americans that would leap at these job opportunities.
Furthermore, other states are indeed following Arizona’s “daring” move as they are likewise tired of federal inactivity. When we think of illegal immigration, we often don’t consider Canadian immigrants. However, Pennsylvania legislature is looking to replicate Arizona’s bill as they fight their own “illegal alien invasion” from the north.
I don’t understand why this is such a sensitive matter to our government and to the general public. The government should be looking out for the rights and liberties of its own citizens. Too often, illegal aliens are generalized under the umbrella term of “undocumented citizens.” They have crossed the border illegally, and they are not citizens. Immigrants are not entitled to the rights and benefits of American citizens until they are citizens.
I believe it is a blessing to live in this wonderful country and have the opportunity to receive an education at one of the nation’s finest institutions. My grandfather struggled to gain citizenship in America when he emigrated from Ireland, but he worked hard for it and succeeded. He valued America for its endless opportunity and felt it was a privilege to be an American. Most of us at Cal Poly share similar immigration stories, as do millions of Mexican-Americans. Legal immigration can be a time-consuming process, but it is not impossible.
Kudos to the state of Arizona. It’s about time the American Dream was protected.