Thread: 2005 colorado legislature GOP

This was huge news yet so little info. This was from 9.am. - 5p.m.!

Article Launched: 11/17/2005 01:00:00 AM

2005 colorado legislature
GOP taking on illegal immigration
Lawmakers are pursuing legislation to make the state a less attractive destination and punish companies that hire undocumented workers.
By Jim Hughes
Denver Post Staff Writer


Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies in Washington, D.C., said Wednesday that states should "make it as difficult as possible for illegal aliens who can t demonstrate (legal residency) to live a normal life here." (Post / Glen Martin)

Conservative Republican lawmakers are pursuing legislation that would make Colorado a less attractive destination for illegal immigrants and punish companies that hire undocumented workers, they said Wednesday at the Capitol.

Meanwhile, a like-minded citizens group intent on immigration reform will start collecting signatures in January for a November 2006 ballot question asking voters to require residency checks of all applicants for state services, its leader said.

The senators and representatives heard from immigration-policy experts and activists from around the country Wednesday at a Republican Study Committee of Colorado event.

The fledgling GOP caucus group, formed in the spring by some of the General Assembly's most conservative legislators, includes three who recently toured the Mexican border.

Among the measures they are contemplating: a requirement that local police record the residency status and employers of people they arrest; a legal-workers-only condition for Colorado business licenses; a mandatory status check for all state hires; and a ban on state contracts for companies that don't ensure that their workers are legal, they said.

The caucus group organized the event to kick off a debate many expect to be a major issue when the legislature convenes in January, said Rep. Dave Schultheis, R-Colorado Springs.

"We need to make sure as many legislators as possible can understand what the issues are," he said. "Most of the politicians ... do not grasp the significance of dealing with this issue or are being cowed."

Invited speakers told the caucus group that illegal immigrants were bringing deadly diseases into the country, committing crimes and overwhelming government programs, the medical system and American culture itself.

They also may constitute the leading edge of an organized effort by Mexico to seize

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the Southwest, one speaker said.

"We have trivialized and removed the dignity of citizenship," lawyer and immigration activist Madeleine Cosman said.

Though immigration policy is decided by the federal government, state governments can take action, said Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies in Washington, D.C.

With many Democratic and Republican leaders in Washington satisfied by a "post- American" vision that de-emphasizes borders, states should not sit idly by, he said.

"Make it as difficult as possible for illegal aliens who can't demonstrate (legal residency) to live a normal life here," he said.

Immigration lawyer Donna Lipinski, part of a group that is preparing to fight next fall's expected ballot question, thought Wednesday's event was "appalling," she said during a break.

"If I were Hispanic and I were sitting in that audience, I would feel attacked," she said. "I would feel like they're trying to shame me."

Democratic House Speaker Andrew Romanoff said Democrats will explore the issue at a national conference in Denver next month.

"This is a challenge we ought to meet, and we intend to," he said.

Staff writer Jim Hughes can be reached at 303-820-1244 or jhughes@denverpost.com.

http://www.denverpost.com/search/ci_3224905

Illegals focus of GOP hearing
Lawmakers gather to learn more about immigration issues
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By Ann Imse and Fernando Quintero, Rocky Mountain News
November 17, 2005
Correction
This story mistakenly identified Rep. Ted Harvey, R-Highlands Ranch, as Rep. Mark Larson, R-Cortez. Larson did not attend the meeting in which lawmakers gathered information about immigration.

Eleven Republican legislators met Wednesday to collect expert testimony on illegal immigration, but serious statistics and calls for strict enforcement were mixed with what one critic called "fear of Mexicans."

Former state Sen. John Andrews testified first, calling illegal immigration "a silent invasion," threatening the American traditions of assimilation and respect for law.

Madeleine Cosman, former professor of medical law at City College in New York, said illegal immigrants in California are giving birth to sick children to collect welfare.

Testifying on a DVD shown at the hearing, she said that "people from Mexico" are the cause of a rise in diseases that "explode hearts" and cause other horrendous symptoms.

Yeh Ling-Ling of the Diversity Alliance for a Sustainable America warned that Mexicans are planning to "reconquer" the southwestern United States and that some are voting and "even running for office."

The meeting in the old state Supreme Court at the Capitol was set up by the Republican Study Committee of Colorado, formed this year to help Republican politicians in state government focus on such issues as lower taxes, personal responsibility and limited government.

It was chaired by state Rep. David Schultheis, R-Colorado Springs, who joined two colleagues last month on a trip to Arizona to meet with lawmakers, talk with border residents and patrol the border with members of Minutemen Civil Defense Corps, a citizens group.

The hearing was billed as an effort to give legislators expert testimony on immigration issues. The Colorado legislature is expected this year to see bills to limit state services to illegal immigrants, and a citizen initiative to do the same is in the works.

Mark Krikorian of the Center for Immigration Studies in Washington, D.C., called for the government to gradually reduce the number of undocumented people by enforcing laws barring them from working. He also called for tax and Social Security officials to enforce immigration law.

After lunch, former Colorado Gov. Dick Lamm advocated tighter border controls and limiting services to illegal immigrants, calling it a "cost- benefit" issue.

"Sure, they pay sales tax. Sure, they're hard-working people. But you get little withholding from their wages. They send their money back to Mexico or somewhere else south of the border. You don't get tax dollars from the revenue side."

Kent Lambert, executive director of the Republican Study Committee of Colorado, asked Lamm about the notion that undocumented immigrants are taking jobs Americans won't do. "If we do away with slavery, who's going to pick the cotton?" retorted Lamm. "The claim that they're doing the work other Americans won't do is vastly overblown."

After Lamm's testimony, state Rep. Mark Larson, R-Cortez, told the Democrat, "We need leaders like you that have a name. I want to encourage you to be louder and more extreme."

Donna Lipinski, a Denver immigration attorney who attended the hearing, said she was "shocked" by some of the testimony.

"I thought there was going to be a discussion," she said. "This has been fear of Mexicans, whether they are here legally or illegally. What I don't hear are viable solutions."

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drm...245606,00.html

Nov 16, 2005 1:20 pm US/Mountain
Informal Hearing On Illegal Immigration Begins
By Steven K. Paulson, AP Writer

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(AP) DENVER Republicans seeking a crackdown on illegal immigrants convened an informal hearing Wednesday, urging lawmakers to stop what they call a "silent invasion" of the United States.

Former Senate President John Andrews, who now heads a conservative think tank, said the issue is not whether the country should welcome immigrants, but how. He said immigrants who follow the law are welcome.

"We draw a line between them and others who seek to enter in violation of our laws," Andrews said.

Rep. Dave Schultheis, who called for the daylong hearing after taking a trip to Arizona in October to meet with the Minutemen Civil Defense Corps -- private citizens who patrol the border -- said lawmakers need to know more about immigration. He said it will be a major issue when the Legislature convenes in January and in next year's elections.

"This is a huge issue with people," said Schultheis.

Karen Roubal of Fort Collins, one of dozens who attended the meeting, said lawmakers need to find ways to round up and deport illegal immigrants and seal the nation's borders.

"We're overwhelmed with illegal immigrants, who are undocumented, unaccounted for, taxing our Social Security system and closing hospitals. This isn't going to be a quick fix," she said.

The meeting was set up by the Republican Study Committee of Colorado, formed earlier this year and modeled after the powerful Republican Study Committee in the U.S. House of Representatives. Its goal is helping Republican politicians in state government focus on such issues as lower taxes, personal responsibility and limited government.

Madeleine Cosman told lawmakers at the meeting that illegal immigrants often have "disgusting" diseases and strain the nation's health care system. She said flesh-eating viruses were rare until the number of immigrants surged.

Cosman said illegal immigrants are giving birth to children who are immediately entitled to benefits. She said those children are "anchor babies," used to gain citizenship for other members of the family.

"I'm not the only one who maintains that anchor babies are in essence an abomination," she said.

Rachel Olivarez-Sellers of the Colorado Democratic Latino Initiative said she was disturbed by some of the statements.

"I was born in the United States. I'm an abomination?" she asked during a break.

Mark Krikorian, director of the Center for Immigration Studies, said the United States faces the possibility of riots similar to the ones that swept France this month if it tries to expand the number of immigrant workers, as some members of Congress have proposed.

"Permanent amnesty could put us at risk," he said.

Manolo Gonzalez-Estay, who formed a group to campaign against proposal on next year's ballot that would restrict services to illegal immigrants, said the meeting was "eye-opening."

He said the meeting raises questions about whether immigrants can get police protection and medical care.

"I think there will be an important discussion on both sides of the debate," he said.

(© 2005 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

http://cbs4denver.com/politics/local...320121830.html

Nov 15, 2005 9:20 am US/Mountain
Immigration Supporters Call For Public Hearings
By Steven K. Paulson, AP Writer

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(AP) DENVER Immigration supporters called for fair and open hearings on Monday after Republican members barred public comment from an informal hearing later this week at the state Capitol on ways to deal with problems involving illegal immigrants.

Kent Lambert, a spokesman for the Republican Study Committee of Colorado, said there would not be time during a daylong hearing that will feature former Democratic Gov. Dick Lamm and other speakers who are calling for a reform of immigration policies.

He characterized Wednesday's meeting as a caucus, not a formal hearing, and said there will be plenty of time to hear from the other side when the Legislature convenes in January.

"This is to hear from experts from this state and out of state. We want to hear what other people have to say. There will be plenty of time to hear from the public," he said.

The group was formed earlier this year to promote such principles as lower taxes, personal responsibility and limited government. It is modeled after the powerful Republican Study Committee in the U.S. House of Representatives, with a goal of helping Republican politicians in state government focus on conservative principles.

Donna Lipinski, an immigration attorney who opposes the Republican coalition, said the meeting, which will be held in the old Supreme Court chambers, should be open to anyone who wants to speak on the issue.

"I think the citizens of Colorado need to know what they're proposing," Lipinski said.

The hearings were scheduled after Rep. Dave Schultheis, a founding member of the study committee, and two other state lawmakers went to Arizona in October to learn about that state's immigration legislation and to meet with the Minutemen Civil Defense Corps, private citizens who patrol the border.

Last week, the immigration supporters criticized GOP Gov. Bill Owens for not immediately rejecting a petition asking him to declare an immigration emergency and set up detention centers for people in the country illegally.

They said it was morally wrong for Owens to claim he needed a legal opinion before deciding what to do about the petition, which asked the governor to designate sports arenas and former military bases as overflow holding areas for immigrants awaiting deportation.

Owens spokesman Dan Hopkins said the governor wanted to know whether he even had the power to declare an immigration emergency, as two neighboring states did. Owens' attorneys determined he did not and the governor has no plans to pursue it, Hopkins said.

(© 2005 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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