AZ Tweaks Immigration Law, Hysterical Critics Unlikely To Be Satisfied

They've tightened up some of the language about "lawful contact" and the role race can and cannot play.

One change to the bill strengthens restrictions against using race or ethnicity as the basis for questioning and inserts those same restrictions in other parts of the law.

Changes to the bill language will actually remove the word "solely" from the sentence, "The attorney general or county attorney shall not investigate complaints that are based solely on race, color or national origin."

Another change replaces the phrase "lawful contact" with "lawful stop, detention or arrest" to apparently clarify that officers don't need to question a victim or witness about their legal status.

A third change specifies that police contact over violations for local civil ordinances can trigger questioning on immigration status.

The law's sponsor, Republican Sen. Russell Pearce, characterized the race and ethnicity changes as clarifications "just to take away the silly arguments and the games, the dishonesty that's been played."

Rep. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Phoenix, said allowing immigration-status contacts for civil violations such as weed-infested yards or too many occupants in a residence could spur complaints of racial profiling.

Some critics will simply say it changes nothing in reality. Cops can still "invent" reasons to stop people they think are illegal aliens based on nothing more than skin color.

Might this happen? Sure. But every law is subject to this type of abuse. You deal with that when it comes in the form of an 'as applied' challenge.

It would be better for all of us is most (not all but most) of the critics of the law just admitted they aren't so much worried about civil rights but ensuring that no action is ever taken against illegal aliens in this country. If you are an open border/amnesty type, have the courage to say it.

Related enough: Congressman Duncan Hunter really needs to consider what he says because stuff like this is not helping anyone.

An audience member asked Hunter, "Would you support deportation of natural-born American citizens that are the children of illegal aliens?"

Hunter responded, "I would have to, yes."

The congressman continued, "It's a complex issue and ... you could look and say, 'You're a mean guy. That's a mean thing to do. That's not a humanitarian thing to do.' " Hunter added, "We simply cannot afford what we're doing right now. We just can't afford it. California's going under."

...At the Saturday gathering, Hunter said, "It takes more than just walking across the border to become an American citizen - it's what's in our souls."

Perhaps the Congressman can explain to me how exactly you deport American citizens from America. You may not be a fan of birthright citizenship but it's been the law of the land since 1868 and was confirmed by the Supreme Court in 1898. Look, feel free to argue all you want against this interpretation but it's simply the law of the land and has been for quite sometime.

And what is this nonsense about American souls? I agree that being an American takes more than getting a passport but he's talking about kids who have lived their whole lives in this country.

The children of immigrants, legal or illegal, who are born and raised in this country are every bit American as any child of a family that's been here for generations. We don't visit the sins of the parents on the children in this country. If Hunter doesn't get that, than maybe he's a little unclear about what the soul of America is.

(Arizona story via Byron York)

posted by DrewM. at 10:42 AM

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