Sam Weaver
Arizona's SB 1070: facts, myths, and the big picture
By Sam Weaver
The recently passed Arizona Immigration Law (SB 1070) has generated a media frenzy. I am shocked — shocked! — that this could happen in an election year. (Apologies to Claude Rains/Captain Renault.)
Let's look at a couple of pertinent facts.
Existing federal law (see, for example, here and here) makes it a crime (misdemeanor) to enter the United States of America without proper documentation/protocol. In some cases, such as multiple illegal entries, a foreign national can be charged with a felony. Under Section 8 USC 1324, stiff fines and penalties are imposed upon any U.S. citizen who knowingly harbors, aids or employs any illegal alien.
The Arizona law is very carefully and cleverly crafted to restate — in many ways verbatim — existing federal law. Arizona's SB 1070 makes it a misdemeanor, in the state of Arizona, to enter the state from a foreign country without proper documentation. It specifically and statutorily prohibits racial profiling/discrimination by any state or local law enforcement official or government agent.
For about a quarter century, the federal government has failed miserably to uphold and enforce its own immigration laws. Parts of the Arizona border with Mexico have now become the primary points of illegal entry into the U.S. And it is not just the illegal entry of persons; it is the illegal entry of drugs, other contraband and even terrorists whose purpose is to kill Americans and to disrupt our way of life!
Let's examine a few myths.
#1) The vast majority of illegal immigrants are decent, law-abiding, hard-working people who just want to provide for their families. #2) Undocumented immigrants do essential work that Americans just won't do. #3) Undocumented aliens contribute to American society more than they take.
Most myths are rooted in at least some degree of truth. Myth #1 may be widely true; however, the very first act of any illegal immigrant upon reaching American soil is a criminal act — a violation of the law. Furthermore, any person who illegally enters a sovereign nation necessarily infringes upon the liberty of all those who are enduring (or who have endured) the process of entering that nation legally. The purpose of law — at least, of American law and of all just law — is to uphold, protect and defend the liberty of the people (citizens) without regard to class, race, sex or creed, against those who would usurp the liberty of others for their own selfish purposes.
If myth #2 is correct, then America is doomed. Has the work ethic in the U.S. become so degraded that teenagers all refuse to harvest fruits and vegetables after school or on their summer break for a few bucks? When I was a kid, I dragged a rickety old lawn mower to nearly every home in my town offering to cut grass for a nominal fee. Are there no laid-off spouses in America needing to supplement the family income by working in hotels, restaurants or for contactors? If menial labor is now all but totally beneath us all, is it any wonder that so many jobs are being sent overseas?
Myth #3 is an outright lie. Data from federal and state bureaucracies — not to mention from private and university surveys — all across the U.S. bear this out time and time again. Costs of government agencies/services, prisons, hospitals and schools are affected, it not, in too many cases, overwhelmed by undocumented aliens. With the exception of the (once) great state of California, especially in recent years, no one knows this better than the good people of the really great state of Arizona. (California, it seems, has accepted illegal immigration as a "fact of life." California is bankrupt. Arizona does not want to go the way of California!)
More facts:
The people of Arizona have perceived a point of no return. The federal government has failed to protect the sovereignty of the U.S. and to defend the borders according to the U.S. Constitution. Phoenix has become the kidnap capital of the U.S. if not the world. Law enforcement officers are being assaulted almost daily and citizens are being threatened and even murdered. Jails, hospitals, schools and government services in Arizona are being crushed to the breaking point. With SB 1070, the people of Arizona have drawn a line in the sand. The Feds have refused to enforce the law and to uphold their oaths to the U.S. Constitution. Brave Arizonans are now saying, "If you won't enforce the law, we will."
Conventional wisdom (i.e., the "media frenzy") brands Arizona's line in the sand as, at best, "controversial." [Why was the so-called "stimulus bill" never labeled "controversial"? Why was neither the health care monstrosity nor the cap-and-tax bill ever called "controversial" by the mainstream media (MSM)?] The worst elements of conventional wisdom label Arizona's ultimatum as at least potentially, "bigoted" or even "racist." Some have even gone so far as to compare it to Nazism or fascism. Conventional wisdom always rejects common sense and accepts the notions of relativism and "social justice."
America's "Great Leader," President Obama, has echoed the worst elements of conventional wisdom in a number of statements and speeches. Candidate Obama promised a post-partisan, post-racial, open and transparent administration. President Obama not only governs according to conventional wisdom, he does so quite amateurishly and incompetently; although, I am convinced, he knows exactly what he is doing!
Late last week we learned that Obama's Attorney General, Eric Holder, has not even read the law! Yet he has had so much to say about it on so many venues! If the Attorney General of the United States has said so much about a 10-page law that has become the focus of the nation, yet he has not even bothered to read it, how can any U.S. citizen have any confidence that he has read the 2,000+ page health care law, or even existing federal law concerning illegal immigration?! And how can we trust anything he has to say about any law; or about anything else for that matter?
A good president would reject conventional wisdom and follow the Constitution — at least he would consider the wisdom and will of the American people! Great presidents learn from their mistakes and focus like a laser beam on Truth. Rather than joining the media frenzy an fretting over the Hispanic vote, President Obama should learn from — and be inspired by — the patriots of Arizona; many of whom, themselves, are Hispanic!
The federal government has failed to enforce its own laws. It has failed its constitutional duty to defend the border and to protect the citizens of the United States against foreign invaders. Arizona is taking a stand. It is saying that we are going to enforce the law in order to protect our citizens, and hopefully that will force the federal government to protect and defend the citizens of Arizona and of all the other states.
If he is wise, President Obama will learn a great lesson from the people of Arizona and he will apply the lesson learned to one of our greatest international quandaries.
On 31 August 2006, the deadline for Iranian compliance with United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 1696 expired. Since then, four more UNSC resolutions and countless Iranian violations have occurred. The safety and security of the Middle East — and the entire world — is imperiled because the UN has failed for years to enforce its mandates. Sound familiar?
If the president were wise, he would learn the lesson that the people of Arizona are boldly presenting to him. If you won't protect us, if you refuse to uphold the law, then we will protect ourselves and you can go to hell!
Sadly, the president is not wise. He is neither protecting the American people nor our allies. He is refusing to uphold the law. Worse, he and his willing accomplices in the MSM are exploiting their own falsehoods about SB 1070 for raw political gain. True patriots are wise to his foolishness. Many of those true patriots are liberty-loving, law-abiding Hispanic citizens. I know and love several of these brave and wise Hispanic patriots!
One more fact:
Rush Limbaugh was absolutely right when he said shortly after the November 2008 election that he hopes Obama fails. Day by day, more and more Americans are realizing that whenever Obama wins, America loses.
© Sam Weaver
May 19, 2010
The recently passed Arizona Immigration Law (SB 1070) has generated a media frenzy. I am shocked — shocked! — that this could happen in an election year. (Apologies to Claude Rains/Captain Renault.)
Let's look at a couple of pertinent facts.
Existing federal law (see, for example, here and here) makes it a crime (misdemeanor) to enter the United States of America without proper documentation/protocol. In some cases, such as multiple illegal entries, a foreign national can be charged with a felony. Under Section 8 USC 1324, stiff fines and penalties are imposed upon any U.S. citizen who knowingly harbors, aids or employs any illegal alien.
The Arizona law is very carefully and cleverly crafted to restate — in many ways verbatim — existing federal law. Arizona's SB 1070 makes it a misdemeanor, in the state of Arizona, to enter the state from a foreign country without proper documentation. It specifically and statutorily prohibits racial profiling/discrimination by any state or local law enforcement official or government agent.
For about a quarter century, the federal government has failed miserably to uphold and enforce its own immigration laws. Parts of the Arizona border with Mexico have now become the primary points of illegal entry into the U.S. And it is not just the illegal entry of persons; it is the illegal entry of drugs, other contraband and even terrorists whose purpose is to kill Americans and to disrupt our way of life!
Let's examine a few myths.
#1) The vast majority of illegal immigrants are decent, law-abiding, hard-working people who just want to provide for their families. #2) Undocumented immigrants do essential work that Americans just won't do. #3) Undocumented aliens contribute to American society more than they take.
Most myths are rooted in at least some degree of truth. Myth #1 may be widely true; however, the very first act of any illegal immigrant upon reaching American soil is a criminal act — a violation of the law. Furthermore, any person who illegally enters a sovereign nation necessarily infringes upon the liberty of all those who are enduring (or who have endured) the process of entering that nation legally. The purpose of law — at least, of American law and of all just law — is to uphold, protect and defend the liberty of the people (citizens) without regard to class, race, sex or creed, against those who would usurp the liberty of others for their own selfish purposes.
If myth #2 is correct, then America is doomed. Has the work ethic in the U.S. become so degraded that teenagers all refuse to harvest fruits and vegetables after school or on their summer break for a few bucks? When I was a kid, I dragged a rickety old lawn mower to nearly every home in my town offering to cut grass for a nominal fee. Are there no laid-off spouses in America needing to supplement the family income by working in hotels, restaurants or for contactors? If menial labor is now all but totally beneath us all, is it any wonder that so many jobs are being sent overseas?
Myth #3 is an outright lie. Data from federal and state bureaucracies — not to mention from private and university surveys — all across the U.S. bear this out time and time again. Costs of government agencies/services, prisons, hospitals and schools are affected, it not, in too many cases, overwhelmed by undocumented aliens. With the exception of the (once) great state of California, especially in recent years, no one knows this better than the good people of the really great state of Arizona. (California, it seems, has accepted illegal immigration as a "fact of life." California is bankrupt. Arizona does not want to go the way of California!)
More facts:
The people of Arizona have perceived a point of no return. The federal government has failed to protect the sovereignty of the U.S. and to defend the borders according to the U.S. Constitution. Phoenix has become the kidnap capital of the U.S. if not the world. Law enforcement officers are being assaulted almost daily and citizens are being threatened and even murdered. Jails, hospitals, schools and government services in Arizona are being crushed to the breaking point. With SB 1070, the people of Arizona have drawn a line in the sand. The Feds have refused to enforce the law and to uphold their oaths to the U.S. Constitution. Brave Arizonans are now saying, "If you won't enforce the law, we will."
Conventional wisdom (i.e., the "media frenzy") brands Arizona's line in the sand as, at best, "controversial." [Why was the so-called "stimulus bill" never labeled "controversial"? Why was neither the health care monstrosity nor the cap-and-tax bill ever called "controversial" by the mainstream media (MSM)?] The worst elements of conventional wisdom label Arizona's ultimatum as at least potentially, "bigoted" or even "racist." Some have even gone so far as to compare it to Nazism or fascism. Conventional wisdom always rejects common sense and accepts the notions of relativism and "social justice."
America's "Great Leader," President Obama, has echoed the worst elements of conventional wisdom in a number of statements and speeches. Candidate Obama promised a post-partisan, post-racial, open and transparent administration. President Obama not only governs according to conventional wisdom, he does so quite amateurishly and incompetently; although, I am convinced, he knows exactly what he is doing!
Late last week we learned that Obama's Attorney General, Eric Holder, has not even read the law! Yet he has had so much to say about it on so many venues! If the Attorney General of the United States has said so much about a 10-page law that has become the focus of the nation, yet he has not even bothered to read it, how can any U.S. citizen have any confidence that he has read the 2,000+ page health care law, or even existing federal law concerning illegal immigration?! And how can we trust anything he has to say about any law; or about anything else for that matter?
A good president would reject conventional wisdom and follow the Constitution — at least he would consider the wisdom and will of the American people! Great presidents learn from their mistakes and focus like a laser beam on Truth. Rather than joining the media frenzy an fretting over the Hispanic vote, President Obama should learn from — and be inspired by — the patriots of Arizona; many of whom, themselves, are Hispanic!
The federal government has failed to enforce its own laws. It has failed its constitutional duty to defend the border and to protect the citizens of the United States against foreign invaders. Arizona is taking a stand. It is saying that we are going to enforce the law in order to protect our citizens, and hopefully that will force the federal government to protect and defend the citizens of Arizona and of all the other states.
If he is wise, President Obama will learn a great lesson from the people of Arizona and he will apply the lesson learned to one of our greatest international quandaries.
On 31 August 2006, the deadline for Iranian compliance with United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 1696 expired. Since then, four more UNSC resolutions and countless Iranian violations have occurred. The safety and security of the Middle East — and the entire world — is imperiled because the UN has failed for years to enforce its mandates. Sound familiar?
If the president were wise, he would learn the lesson that the people of Arizona are boldly presenting to him. If you won't protect us, if you refuse to uphold the law, then we will protect ourselves and you can go to hell!
Sadly, the president is not wise. He is neither protecting the American people nor our allies. He is refusing to uphold the law. Worse, he and his willing accomplices in the MSM are exploiting their own falsehoods about SB 1070 for raw political gain. True patriots are wise to his foolishness. Many of those true patriots are liberty-loving, law-abiding Hispanic citizens. I know and love several of these brave and wise Hispanic patriots!
One more fact:
Rush Limbaugh was absolutely right when he said shortly after the November 2008 election that he hopes Obama fails. Day by day, more and more Americans are realizing that whenever Obama wins, America loses.
© Sam Weaver
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