About That GOP Plan
About a week ago, I posted on what the GOP plan for the 2008 election was likely to to be, at least in California. It appears that Steve Wiegand, a columnist for the Sacramento Bee had the same idea. Mr. Wiegand covers the California Legislature closely, and I find myself paying close attention to his arguments, even when the lefty in me thinks he's being too kind. Go read the linked column. He wasn't being too kind yesterday.
In case you missed it, the Reeps have determined that illegal immigrants are to blame for most of the state's gaping budget deficit. (Democrats are to blame for the rest of it.)
To remedy this problem (the illegal problem, not the Democrat problem), GOP lawmakers put together what they call a "border security" package of "20 common-sense measures" they said "would help the state secure the border and better protect Californians."
Weigand than details two of these magical pills:
What the bill would do is require cops who arrest a drunken driver, after an accident that involves an injury or does more than $600 worth of property damage, to determine whether the drunk is legally in the United States.
If the drunk couldn't prove to the cop's satisfaction his legal right to be on U.S. soil, the cop would be obligated to contact federal immigration officials about it.
Garrick asserted that his bill would "dramatically reduce the number of unnecessary DUI deaths and injuries in California." (I don't think he meant to imply that there are necessary DUI deaths and injuries.)
But he didn't produce any statistical data that show illegal-immigrant drunken drivers are any more of a problem than legal resident drunken drivers. And the idea of asking cops to determine citizenship status without resorting to racial profiling is a pretty tall order. ...
...a bill by Assemblyman Van Tran, R-Garden Grove, that would require state prison officials to determine the immigration status of any new prisoner.
The apparent purpose of AB 2141 is to give the state a firm illegal immigrant inmate count so it can seek reimbursement from the feds for housing illegals.
But prison officials already count illegals, and the state already demands the feds pay up, and the feds already ignore the demands.
In other words, California voters need to buy more sunglasses, given the fire works blown off by Republicans ("Reepers"? Buwahawahahaha!) What is so stupid about this plan is that there is a pretty sizable immigrant block from Latin America (icluding the Mexicans, the real target of this obscenity) who have gotten their citizenship and will vote. Just like there there was a pretty sizable immigrant block in various other parts of the country at various times in our recent history: Poles, Slovenians, Hungarians, and (yes, Mr. Van Tran) Vietnamese, and before them, Irish, Italians, and Chinese and (gasp!) Japanese. Don't the Republicans realize that demonizing everything but the British is not real wise these days, especially in California? Apparently not.
It seems like Reeps could accomplish more in this area if they focused more on real problems and less on trying to score political points with the faithful by demonizing illegal immigrants.
Of course, accentuating the negative is what GOP legislators are pretty much relegated to these days.
Maybe they're just sticking with what they're good at.
That odd clapping sound you hear to the west of the Mississippi is an old woman giving Steve Wiegand a standing ovation
In case you missed it, the Reeps have determined that illegal immigrants are to blame for most of the state's gaping budget deficit. (Democrats are to blame for the rest of it.)
To remedy this problem (the illegal problem, not the Democrat problem), GOP lawmakers put together what they call a "border security" package of "20 common-sense measures" they said "would help the state secure the border and better protect Californians."
Weigand than details two of these magical pills:
What the bill would do is require cops who arrest a drunken driver, after an accident that involves an injury or does more than $600 worth of property damage, to determine whether the drunk is legally in the United States.
If the drunk couldn't prove to the cop's satisfaction his legal right to be on U.S. soil, the cop would be obligated to contact federal immigration officials about it.
Garrick asserted that his bill would "dramatically reduce the number of unnecessary DUI deaths and injuries in California." (I don't think he meant to imply that there are necessary DUI deaths and injuries.)
But he didn't produce any statistical data that show illegal-immigrant drunken drivers are any more of a problem than legal resident drunken drivers. And the idea of asking cops to determine citizenship status without resorting to racial profiling is a pretty tall order. ...
...a bill by Assemblyman Van Tran, R-Garden Grove, that would require state prison officials to determine the immigration status of any new prisoner.
The apparent purpose of AB 2141 is to give the state a firm illegal immigrant inmate count so it can seek reimbursement from the feds for housing illegals.
But prison officials already count illegals, and the state already demands the feds pay up, and the feds already ignore the demands.
In other words, California voters need to buy more sunglasses, given the fire works blown off by Republicans ("Reepers"? Buwahawahahaha!) What is so stupid about this plan is that there is a pretty sizable immigrant block from Latin America (icluding the Mexicans, the real target of this obscenity) who have gotten their citizenship and will vote. Just like there there was a pretty sizable immigrant block in various other parts of the country at various times in our recent history: Poles, Slovenians, Hungarians, and (yes, Mr. Van Tran) Vietnamese, and before them, Irish, Italians, and Chinese and (gasp!) Japanese. Don't the Republicans realize that demonizing everything but the British is not real wise these days, especially in California? Apparently not.
It seems like Reeps could accomplish more in this area if they focused more on real problems and less on trying to score political points with the faithful by demonizing illegal immigrants.
Of course, accentuating the negative is what GOP legislators are pretty much relegated to these days.
Maybe they're just sticking with what they're good at.
That odd clapping sound you hear to the west of the Mississippi is an old woman giving Steve Wiegand a standing ovation
Labels: California, Election 2008, Immigration
posted by Diane at 10:03 AM
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