Tuesday, October 8, 2024
Hawai'i Free Press

Current Articles | Archives

Friday, May 21, 2010
Heritage: Raising Arizona's Defense
By Heritage Foundation @ 2:46 PM :: 7837 Views :: National News, Ethics, World News, Family

It isn't easy being Arizona these days, especially when President Barack Obama puts politics before Americans' interests, a foreign head of state before the United States, and an agenda of apology before much-needed, sensible reforms.

But that's just what happened this week when Mexican President Felipe Calderon visited Washington, DC. President Obama extended a warm hand to Calderon and demagogued Arizona’s illegal immigration law all in the name of politics. Standing in the White House Rose Garden with Calderon, President Obama took the unprecedented step of publicly siding with Mexico against Arizona, saying:

We also discussed the new law in Arizona, which is a misdirected effort — a misdirected expression of frustration over our broken immigration system, and which has raised concerns in both our countries...

And I want everyone, American and Mexican, to know my administration is taking a very close look at the Arizona law. We're examining any implications, especially for civil rights. Because in the United States of America, no law-abiding person — be they an American citizen, a legal immigrant, or a visitor or tourist from Mexico — should ever be subject to suspicion simply because of what they look like."

All of this centers around Arizona's new law that directs law enforcement officers to ask about a person's legal status if reasonable suspicion exists that they're unlawfully in the country. And they're to do that in a reasonable way only during a lawful stop, detention, or arrest.

Enter the spin zone. Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano and U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder took a swing at the new law, later admitting that they've neither studied nor even read it, let alone mentioned amendments that prohibit using race, color or national origin even as a factor in executing it. And yesterday, Calderon spoke to a joint session of Congress, audaciously criticized Arizona's law, and drew a standing ovation from Democratic members of Congress, Holder, Napolitano and Vice President Joe Biden.

Their attacks are in direct contradiction to the Obama Administration's own policies, which have recognized an appropriate role for state and local governments in dealing with illegal immigration. In 2009, the Obama Administration spent $60 million on grants to state, local and tribal law enforcement in 13 states, all for the purpose of dealing with border-related issues.

But that’s not all. The Obama White House encourages state and local governments to participate in the "Secure Communities" program, which promotes identifying and removing criminal aliens. Oh, and Homeland Security funds Border Enforcement Security Teams, which include state and local law enforcement. Tack on the longstanding constitutional principle that states have clear authority to act in the interests of their citizens' public safety, and one wonders on what peg the White House is hanging its highly critical hat.

But the failure to make political hay while the sun shines is a wasted opportunity in the Obama White House, especially when this issue is a perfect entree for the President to champion one of his favorite causes – granting amnesty to millions unlawfully in the United States.

There's a better incremental approach the White House and Congress can take, including: responsible border security; the enforcement of immigration and workplace laws; workable temporary worker programs; and working with Mexico to address its desperate need for security and civil society and economic reforms.

As The Heritage Foundation's James Carafano writes:

Congress should reject efforts by the White House to demonize the people of Arizona in a crass effort to further the President’s political agenda. The Congress should also insist on incremental, commonsense policies that will address the pressing need for immigration and border security reforms instead of the amnesty-first approach—which both the American people and the Congress roundly rejected the last time it was proposed in 2007.

Meanwhile, for Arizona's part, it has acted because the federal government has failed to secure America's national borders. The state now has the obligation to act responsibly in the course of implementing the law.

---30---

RECENT ENTRIES

QUICK HITS

Links

TEXT "follow HawaiiFreePress" to 40404

Register to Vote

2aHawaii

Aloha Pregnancy Care Center

AntiPlanner

Antonio Gramsci Reading List

A Place for Women in Waipio

Ballotpedia Hawaii

Broken Trust

Build More Hawaiian Homes Working Group

Christian Homeschoolers of Hawaii

Cliff Slater's Second Opinion

DVids Hawaii

FIRE

Fix Oahu!

Frontline: The Fixers

Genetic Literacy Project

Grassroot Institute

Habele.org

Hawaii Aquarium Fish Report

Hawaii Aviation Preservation Society

Hawaii Catholic TV

Hawaii Christian Coalition

Hawaii Cigar Association

Hawaii ConCon Info

Hawaii Debt Clock

Hawaii Defense Foundation

Hawaii Family Forum

Hawaii Farmers and Ranchers United

Hawaii Farmer's Daughter

Hawaii Federation of Republican Women

Hawaii History Blog

Hawaii Jihadi Trial

Hawaii Legal News

Hawaii Legal Short-Term Rental Alliance

Hawaii Matters

Hawaii Military History

Hawaii's Partnership for Appropriate & Compassionate Care

Hawaii Public Charter School Network

Hawaii Rifle Association

Hawaii Shippers Council

Hawaii Together

HiFiCo

Hiram Fong Papers

Homeschool Legal Defense Hawaii

Honolulu Navy League

Honolulu Traffic

House Minority Blog

Imua TMT

Inouye-Kwock, NYT 1992

Inside the Nature Conservancy

Inverse Condemnation

July 4 in Hawaii

Land and Power in Hawaii

Lessons in Firearm Education

Lingle Years

Managed Care Matters -- Hawaii

MentalIllnessPolicy.org

Missile Defense Advocacy

MIS Veterans Hawaii

NAMI Hawaii

Natatorium.org

National Parents Org Hawaii

NFIB Hawaii News

NRA-ILA Hawaii

Obookiah

OHA Lies

Opt Out Today

Patients Rights Council Hawaii

Practical Policy Institute of Hawaii

Pritchett Cartoons

Pro-GMO Hawaii

RailRipoff.com

Rental by Owner Awareness Assn

Research Institute for Hawaii USA

Rick Hamada Show

RJ Rummel

School Choice in Hawaii

SenatorFong.com

Talking Tax

Tax Foundation of Hawaii

The Real Hanabusa

Time Out Honolulu

Trustee Akina KWO Columns

Waagey.org

West Maui Taxpayers Association

What Natalie Thinks

Whole Life Hawaii