By Fred Lucas,
Staff Writer
CNSNews.com
Several state lawmakers are seeking to apply immigration laws similar
to that passed by the Arizona Legislature, even as the Obama administration
questions the Arizona law’s legitimacy.
At least eight states —
Utah, Oklahoma, Ohio, Missouri, Georgia, South Carolina, Texas, and Maryland —
reportedly are considering legislation similar to the Arizona law, which allows police
to determine a person's immigration status following a "lawful stop, detention, or arrest."
"This legislation mirrors federal laws regarding immigration enforcement,"
Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer said when she sign the bill into law.
" Despite erroneous and misleading statements suggesting otherwise,
the new state misdemeanor crime of willful failure to complete or carry an alien
registration document is adopted verbatim from the same offense found in federal statute."
In Ohio, State Rep. Courtney Combs, a Republican, and Butler County Sheriff
Richard Jones wrote to Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland and legislative leaders about
the need for immigration reform in the state, but Strickland, a Democrat, said
he would not sign such a law.
Now Combs and Jones are seeking a ballot measure to let voters decide on an
Arizona-style law for the state. “I get the question ‘why is Ohio concerned about this?’
The answer is that we’re getting the drugs from the illegal immigration,” Combs told
CNSNews.com Tuesday.
Combs said most of those drugs are smuggled into Arizona and then taken to Ohio.
“I have had so many people call and volunteer to help us get this on the ballot,”
Combs said. “I firmly believe if we get this on the ballot, it will pass. That would
be an amazing feat, for the people to override the governor.”
Combs said he is shooting for the November 2011 ballot largely as a matter of
logistics, because it would be tough at this time to collect the 400,000 signatures
needed for a ballot measure and to finalize the legal language for such a law.
Meanwhile, 46 state legislatures have considered 1,180 bills and resolutions relating
to illegal immigration so far this year, with 71 laws enacted, according to the National
Conference for State Legislatures.
The controversial Arizona law mirrors federal law. It requires local law enforcement
officers during a lawful stop to determine the immigration status of an individual by
asking the individual to show identification that residents are already required to carry
by law; and it authorizes law enforcement to securely transfer verified illegal aliens to
federal custody.
The law prohibits racial profiling and gives state residents the right to sue local agencies
for not complying with the state law.
“The purpose of the legislation at the state level is to develop state cooperation with
the federal immigration authorities,” Jack Martin, special projects director for the
Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), which advocates stricter border security.
“The Obama administration and previous administrations have recognized similar
cooperation as important in helping enforcement,” Martin told CNSNews.com
Maryland issues drivers licenses to illegal aliens. Maryland State Delegate
Pat McDonough, a Republican, has introduced a bill that he said is “a copy of
the Arizona law.” He does not believe it could pass until the next legislative session.
He also told CNSNews.com he is going to start a website and mail a survey to every
candidate for state office – from governor to state legislator – to track where each
candidate stands on the matter.
State Rep. Mark Parkinson, a Missouri Republican, believes the measure could pass
the House this year, but with less than a month left in the session, it likely will not pass
the Senate.
“Next year we will be able to start the process a lot earlier of making it illegal in
Missouri to be,” Parkinson said. “The vast majority of the Arizona law copied
federal law. It is already illegal at the federal level. Now it is illegal at the state level.
People are upset that a law might actually be enforced. Without prosecution,
a law is worthless.”
President Obama has questioned the new Arizona law, and the Justice Department
is reviewing whether it is constitutional. White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs
said this demonstrates why the federal government must enact comprehensive
immigration reform.
“The president for quite some time has been somebody who has fought for
comprehensive immigration reform. Regardless of what side of the political argument
you’re on, I don’t think there is any doubt that what is happening in Arizona leads you
to understand that this town has to act on something that is comprehensive lest we
have immigration policy by 50 states,” Gibbs said.
Sens. Harry Reid (D-Nev.), Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Robert Menendez (D-N.J.)
last week proposed an immigration reform bill that would establish a
“pathway to citizenship” for the some 12 million illegal aliens in the country now.
Opponents of this legislation call it “amnesty.”
Similar legislation died when it had the support of Republican President George W. Bush
and Democratic leaders in Congress, but this legislation appears unlikely to have any
bipartisan support.
The president indicated reluctance last week to push the issue, saying,
“We’ve gone through a very tough year, and I’ve been working Congress very hard,
so I know there may not be an appetite immediately to dive into another controversial
issue.”
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