ilbegone
05-30-2011, 07:04 AM
Nearly every state in the union tried to tackle immigration on its own this year in the absence of any congressional movement on the matter, and more than half considered Arizona-style enforcement measures, up from just six in 2010...
...in legislature after legislature, nearly all the most punitive measures failed...
...What had passed as of Monday mostly reinforced current federal law, though a small number of states actually passed legislation that was helpful to illegal immigrants...
...Louisiana State Rep. Joe Harrison, a Republican, said federal inaction prompted his interest in state laws on immigration...
...But Harrison's bill has yet to move out of committee, and most of the others failed, as did most of the proposals requiring businesses to use the federal government's electronic E-verify system to check the eligibility of new hires. Only a few states made any serious attempt to crack down on employers...
...So far, only Georgia and Utah have passed comprehensive bills. South Carolina and Alabama are still considering them. Utah's law includes a provision to allow illegal immigrants to work in the state, and the American Civil Liberties Union has already sued Utah over the law's enforcement provisions... A judge blocked the bill last week, following the ACLU lawsuit...
Georgia was the shining example for those hoping to step up enforcement and the closest to Arizona. Its new law allows local officers to check the immigration status of a suspect who can't produce an accepted form of ID. It also includes a provision requiring employers with more than 10 employees to use E-Verify by July 2013, similar to a 2007 law Arizona. Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal signed the bill earlier this month and opponents say they plan to sue the state...
...Most legislation never gets out of committee, and compromise is always key.
But experts on both sides credit businesses for much of the legislations' failure.
"Business owners came out of the woodwork in a way they hadn't done before," said Tamar Jacoby, president of ImmigrationWorks USA...
...Jacoby acknowledged many businesses particularly opposed E-verify...
...Jacoby said it was the Arizona-like enforcement sections of the bills that generated the attention and public debate, and that in many states, E-verify went down along with them.
Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, which advocates stricter limits on immigration, believes many businesses concerned about E-verify cynically stoked opposition to the bills by emphasizing the enforcement angle.
"The businesses community really did pull out all the stops on this, and I have to give them props," Krikorian said. "The strategy was to make a big deal about Arizona-style legislation in order to scare off E-verify." ...
...Krikorian noted the Supreme Court will soon rule on the constitutionality of a 2007 Arizona law that mandated all companies there use E-verify. If that law is upheld, he believes other states will again follow Arizona's lead...
And this little gem I separated from the above. This is what happens when the name callers and obvious bigots give their enemy ammunition:
In Kansas, they quickly spread a YouTube clip of Republican State Rep. Virgil Peck likening illegal immigrants to feral hogs, generating a swift backlash nationwide that helped doom bills there.
The full article http://www.dailynews.com/ci_18120046
...in legislature after legislature, nearly all the most punitive measures failed...
...What had passed as of Monday mostly reinforced current federal law, though a small number of states actually passed legislation that was helpful to illegal immigrants...
...Louisiana State Rep. Joe Harrison, a Republican, said federal inaction prompted his interest in state laws on immigration...
...But Harrison's bill has yet to move out of committee, and most of the others failed, as did most of the proposals requiring businesses to use the federal government's electronic E-verify system to check the eligibility of new hires. Only a few states made any serious attempt to crack down on employers...
...So far, only Georgia and Utah have passed comprehensive bills. South Carolina and Alabama are still considering them. Utah's law includes a provision to allow illegal immigrants to work in the state, and the American Civil Liberties Union has already sued Utah over the law's enforcement provisions... A judge blocked the bill last week, following the ACLU lawsuit...
Georgia was the shining example for those hoping to step up enforcement and the closest to Arizona. Its new law allows local officers to check the immigration status of a suspect who can't produce an accepted form of ID. It also includes a provision requiring employers with more than 10 employees to use E-Verify by July 2013, similar to a 2007 law Arizona. Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal signed the bill earlier this month and opponents say they plan to sue the state...
...Most legislation never gets out of committee, and compromise is always key.
But experts on both sides credit businesses for much of the legislations' failure.
"Business owners came out of the woodwork in a way they hadn't done before," said Tamar Jacoby, president of ImmigrationWorks USA...
...Jacoby acknowledged many businesses particularly opposed E-verify...
...Jacoby said it was the Arizona-like enforcement sections of the bills that generated the attention and public debate, and that in many states, E-verify went down along with them.
Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, which advocates stricter limits on immigration, believes many businesses concerned about E-verify cynically stoked opposition to the bills by emphasizing the enforcement angle.
"The businesses community really did pull out all the stops on this, and I have to give them props," Krikorian said. "The strategy was to make a big deal about Arizona-style legislation in order to scare off E-verify." ...
...Krikorian noted the Supreme Court will soon rule on the constitutionality of a 2007 Arizona law that mandated all companies there use E-verify. If that law is upheld, he believes other states will again follow Arizona's lead...
And this little gem I separated from the above. This is what happens when the name callers and obvious bigots give their enemy ammunition:
In Kansas, they quickly spread a YouTube clip of Republican State Rep. Virgil Peck likening illegal immigrants to feral hogs, generating a swift backlash nationwide that helped doom bills there.
The full article http://www.dailynews.com/ci_18120046