Republican Bay State sheriffs blasted Democratic senatorial hopeful Elizabeth Warren this afternoon, calling her “out of step with the people of Massachusetts” for opposing a controversial measure that would allow law enforcement to track illegal aliens.
“She’s out of step with the people of Massachusetts and even her own political party,” said Worcester County Sheriff Lewis Evangelidis of Warren. Warren doesn’t support the Secure Communities Act, which would allow law enforcement officials to run the fingerprints of those arrested to check if they are here illegally.
By Hillary Chabot
Monday, March 12, 2012 - Updated 40 minutes ago
“The people of Massachusetts deserve a senator who is committed to public safety ... and that senator is Scott Brown,” said Evangelidis, noting that a recent stabbing in Milford might have been avoided had the program been in use.
Brown is in a heated battle for re-election and will likely face Warren, a former consumer protection advocate with President Obama’s administration. The program became a wedge issue between the two early on as Brown offered strong support and Warren suggested it might hurt law enforcement because it would deter immigrants from cooperating with the police.
Bristol County Sheriff Thomas Hodgson also slammed Warren for supporting amnesty and in-state tuition for illegal aliens, saying the Harvard Law professor looks at it “from an ivory tower” point of view.
“Clearly she really is out of touch with the importance of public safety and how it impacts everything else in our society,” said Hodgson, who warned that, “We are going to see people who will end up being victimized or potentially killed ... because we won’t implement this program.”
A spokeswoman for Warren said the candidate said she believes that the FBI and ICE should share information to target “dangerous and violent offenders.” Warren also wants to talk with law enforcement officials across the state to see what they believe an effective program would look like, the spokeswoman added.
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