UPDATE 1-Arizona governor signs toughest U.S. immigration law
* Law requires police to determine immigration status
* May become national issue in election year (Adds details of law, Obama and Brewer quotes)
PHOENIX, April 23 (Reuters) - Arizona Governor Jan Brewer on Friday signed into effect the toughest immigration law in the United States, which President Barack Obama singled out as a "misguided" effort that showed the need for national reform.
Police in the border state with Mexico will now be required to determine if people are in the country illegally if there is "reasonable suspicion" -- which critics charge will open the door to racial profiling.
Immigration is a bitterly fought issue in the United States, where some 10.8 million illegal immigrants live and work in the shadows.
Several thousand people gathered outside the state capitol in Phoenix ahead of the governor's announcement.
The bill -- passed by the Republican-controlled state Senate this week and signed by Brewer, a Republican -- is expected to spark a legal challenge and already is a hot issue in the run-up to U.S. congressional elections in November.
"If we continue to fail to act at a federal level, we will continue to see misguided efforts opening up around the country," Obama said earlier on Friday at a ceremony swearing in new U.S. citizens.
Brewer said the new law strengthened Arizona.
"It protects all of us, every Arizona citizen and everyone here in our state lawfully and it does so while ensuring that the constitutional rights of all in Arizona remain solid," she said. (Reporting by David Schwartz; writing by Tim Gaynor and Peter Henderson; editing by John O'Callaghan)
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The ability to protect their legal citizens from the thousands of illegals that cross over the borders and either stay within the state or move on to virtually every state in the country is a priority for them. From a financial standpoint, this law will help to reduce everything from the education budget, the state supported healthcare services and the continued law enforcement costs behind battling the drug cartels and human trafficking organizations that have been holding turf wars in the streets and communities of the major cities within Arizona.
In reality, this should not be a state’s individual responsibility but rather a federal mandate that we enforce the existing laws on the books and establish a zero tolerance policy that keeps those who seek to avoid the US laws. But Arizona is now forced to go it alone and enact policies that are extremely sensitive and tip toe along the fine line of legal and ethical actions. Unfortunately, those who choose to knowingly break the US laws will pray on the kind hearted humanitarian nature of the general US public. What is even more arrogant are those who actually believe some ancient position that the borders should not exist for them because at one time they lived on this land and therefore they don’t need to follow this sovereign nation’s laws.
It is foolish to think that the police will have enough time to simply pick people randomly out of the crowd simply because they see a potential illegal immigrant. What most of the complainers forget is that they are required to carry a drivers license and proof of insurance while driving and if stopped, they need to present all of these as part of the initial discussion. If you walk along a public street and are not doing anything illegal, don’t expect to be stopped. Create an incident, do something potentially illegal and if someone calls the police expect to be questioned and asked for documentation. Don’t carry identification and regardless of your color, race or religion and you can expect to be subjected to further questioning or police action.
Who else is to blame? Try the Mexican government. Filled with corruption and a lack of real interest in seeing the more than 12 million returning to their country where they would seek public and social services, education and job opportunities. They are far more content to reap the benefits from the billion’s of dollars that make their way back across the border to the extended family members who remain behind.
From a business point of view, this is purely a one-sided deal. Mexicans can simply cross the border and create their own business opportunities, purchase land and become homeowners, yet a US company cannot enter Mexico autonomously and establish a similar opportunity. We must secure a Mexican partner and are often relegated to leasing land and homes for long term contracts that have no rights should their be a regime change.
Look north of our country’s border and to find work in Canada, you must first prove that only you can do the proposed job and that no Canadian is available to fill that position.
Both Democrats and Republicans carry an equal amount of blame because illegal immigration has supporters on both sides of the political isle. Some seek a legal path to naturalization for the sake of more votes. Others have large supporters who enjoy the benefits of a second class workforce that is forced to accept lower wages and poor working conditions in exchange for looking the other way.
For anyone reading this post, understand that I am for legal immigration where anyone who wishes to follow the prescribed steps to becoming a citizen should earn our praise and support. What I am not for is those who somehow feel entitled to what the US has to offer and somehow should not be subject to the existing immigration laws, regardless of how challenging they might be.
BB
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