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  1. #1
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    Battle lines drawn along Mexico border

    http://msnbc.msn.com/id/15251738

    Battle lines drawn along Mexico border




    Every night between 6,000 and 6,500 foreigners try to cross from Mexico into the US, most of them into the desert state of Arizona. Some two-thirds of them *succeed.

    If J.D. Hayworth's crushing handshake is any guide, future illegal aliens can expect much stiffer resistance at the border. The Republican congressman, who represents a large suburb of Phoenix, Arizona's commercial capital, is one of the leading lights of the "enforcement first" Republicans who want to build a 1,120 km fence along the US border with Mexico. They also want to deport as many as possible of the estimated 12m illegal aliens already living in the US.

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    That puts the former American football player at odds with John McCain, his fellow Republican and a senator from Arizona, who is sponsoring "comprehensive reform" that would set up a temporary guest-worker programme for unskilled immigrants and stiffen policing all along the US-Mexico border.

    It also puts Mr Hayworth at loggerheads with Harry Mitchell, his Democratic opponent, who polls say stands at least an odds-even chance at mid-term elections next month of ejecting the Republican from the seat he has held since 1994.

    Like Mr McCain, a probable Republican contender for the 2008 presidential race, Mr Mitchell believes in providing existing "illegals" with a pathway to American citizenship once they have cleared their tax arrears. Although it is also sponsored by George W. Bush, Mr Hayworth believes that most of Arizona rejects the plan to prov*ide what he describes as an "amnesty" to illegals.

    "If you have a hole in the roof and the water is flooding into your house, the first thing you do is you fix the roof," said Mr Hayworth, at his modest campaign offices off one of Phoenix's many freeways. "Once you've fixed the roof then you attend to the interior water damage."

    With an unemployment rate of just 3.6 per cent – well below the national average – Arizona's interior economic damage is not easy to detect. Fuelled by a booming services sector and America's inexorable demographic shift to the south, Arizona is visibly prosperous. But if you peer behind the shiny new wallpaper you can find damp on the walls, say supporters of Mr Hayworth.

    "If you look at what has happened to the wages of people in the bottom half of the economy – particularly among African-Americans – then illegal labour has a direct downward effect on incomes," said Randall Pullen, an attorney who also runs Protect Our City, a group that campaigns to deport illegal aliens from Phoenix. "Then there is the crime. Statistics show that 13 per cent of illegals who come to America have a criminal record, often for very serious crimes such as rape and murder."

    But their loudest argument is that America's porous southern border undermines national security. Mr Hayworth cites recent testimony by Robert Mueller, the head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, who said that some of those caught crossing over were from Muslim countries. "There is a popular belief they are all from Mexico: not true," said Mr Hayworth. "Many of them are from Islamo-fascist countries that wish to do us harm."

    Across town, at another oasis of strip malls amid Phoenix's endless desert of eight-lane freeways, Harry Mitchell is addressing a gathering of postal workers. Although the quaintly named National Association of Letter Carriers has endorsed the Democrat, one or two are sceptical of comprehensive reform. "Why aren't you proposing to penalise employers who hire illegal immigrants?" asks one. Mr Mitchell prevaricates. Then says that he is.

    A grandfather who has held locally elected positions for the past 32 years, Mr Mitchell's almost teddy-bear demeanour cuts a striking contrast with his opponent. But his message is equally consistent.

    "Why is my opponent only talking about immigration now in an election year?" he asks. "The Republicans have controlled the House of Representatives since 1994 and they have done nothing. Hayworth is playing politics with immigration to divert your attention from other issues, such as the collapse of ethics in Congress."

    It is a charge that has some force. According to Washington's Center for Responsive Politics, Mr Hayworth is one of the largest recipients of donations from clients of Jack Abramoff, a notorious lobbyist imprisoned for fraud this year.

    "I am a great believer in public service," Mr Mitchell continues. "We need to change the way business is done in Washington."

    Although hardly original, Mr Mitchell's plea appears to be sincere. As does Mr Hayworth's uncompromising line on immigration. "My opponent," says Mr Mitchell, "wants to hire bond bailsmen – call them bounty hunters – to deport illegal immigrants. Is this the kind of America we want?"

    The postal workers evidently like Mr Mitchell. But their applause is not emphatic.

    Copyright The Financial Times Ltd. All rights reserved.
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    But their loudest argument is that America's porous southern border undermines national security. Mr Hayworth cites recent testimony by Robert Mueller, the head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, who said that some of those caught crossing over were from Muslim countries. "There is a popular belief they are all from Mexico: not true," said Mr Hayworth. "Many of them are from Islamo-fascist countries that wish to do us harm."
    This is the reason that makes me the most angry at this President and Administration. Enough of this corrupt government. Build the fence and put the Army on the border. We as a nation need to be PROTECTED!
    Join our efforts to Secure America's Borders and End Illegal Immigration by Joining ALIPAC's E-Mail Alerts network (CLICK HERE)

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