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Governor causes immigration stir
He lauds the Minuteman patrols along the Mexican borders

By Gary Delsohn and Aurelio Rojas -- Bee Capitol Bureau
Published 2:15 am PDT Friday, April 29, 2005

In his strongest language yet on illegal immigration, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger lavishly praised private citizens patrolling the Mexican border - a group President Bush has called "vigilantes" - and demanded that controversial Los Angeles billboards promoting a Spanish-language television station be removed.



See also http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-2118.html for more photos of billboard, discussion thread and related information

The comments about the border patrols, which came on a popular Southern California talk radio show, touched off a storm of denunciation from Latino and Democratic political leaders.

"I think they've done a terrific job," Schwarzenegger said of the so-called Minuteman volunteers who have been patrolling the Mexico border in Arizona. Others plan similar efforts in California this summer.

"They've cut down the crossing of illegal immigrants a huge percentage," he said. "So it just shows that it works when you go and make an effort and when you work hard. I mean, it is a doable thing, and it's just that our federal government is not doing their job. It's a shame that the private citizen has to go in there and start patrolling our borders."

In a statement released by her office, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., scolded Schwarzenegger for endorsing the Minutemen and said he should instead pressure Bush to do more to secure the borders.

"It is a singular failure that the Bush administration has refused to put adequate patrols along the borders," she said. "I am surprised that the governor, rather than call the president of his party and urge additional border patrol agents, has just made a statement praising efforts by untrained volunteers to patrol the borders."

Schwarzenegger administration sources said the Republican governor asked to call in to the popular "John and Ken Show" on KFI radio in Los Angeles because he wanted to weigh in on a controversy over billboards promoting Channel 62, a Spanish-language television station.

The billboards, which show two cable newscasters and the Los Angeles skyline behind them, say "Los Angeles, CA" with the word "CA" crossed out and replaced with "Mexico." Below that are the Spanish words "Tu ciudad. Tu equipo," which translates into English as: "Your city. Your team." Schwarzenegger said the billboards encourage illegal immigration and should be removed immediately.

"I think it's a big mistake to put a billboard up there like that," he said. "I think it is extremely divisive to do that. It is just unnecessary. It doesn't help anyone. ... The big mistake is that it promotes illegal aliens to come in here, and it's the last thing that we need. ..."

"When you're here," he went on, "I think you should really be a Californian and work in the best interest of California, not represent Mexico."

Station officials could not be reached for comment after Schwarzenegger made his remarks Thursday afternoon, but they have said the billboards were intended to draw attention to the Noticias 62 newscast, not provoke controversy.

But it was Schwarzenegger's comments about the Minutemen that set off a storm. They came just a week after he ignited a controversy by saying the borders should be "closed." He later apologized and said he misspoke and meant only that the borders should be more secure.

The Minutemen consist of hundreds of armed private citizens angry with the federal government's failure to secure the borders. They have been patrolling part of the Mexico-Arizona border to deter immigrants from coming into this country. Both the Mexican government and U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials - as well as civil rights groups - have criticized their activities.

Despite the criticism, anti-immigration activists from border states are organizing similar efforts.

Earlier this month, a group in San Diego said it was organizing the same type of patrol for the border there.

"Scapegoating and immigrant-bashing are the last refuge of a wounded politician," Assemblyman Hector De La Torre, D-South Gate, said of Schwarzenegger's comments.

The governor's remarks, De La Torre said, "show that he is trying to deflect attention away from his poor performance as governor - much like Pete Wilson did."

As governor, Wilson stepped up his criticism of illegal immigration after his poll numbers dropped - culminating in grainy television campaign commercials that warned "they keep coming."

"We've just seen (Schwarzenegger's) 60 percent disapproval rating and so he's going after immigrants," De La Torre said. He referred to a new statewide poll that shows Schwarzenegger's approval rating is 40 percent among California adults, down 20 percentage points since January.

Schwarzenegger addressed the Minutemen controversy in response to a question from one of the talk show hosts about how best to control illegal immigration across the Mexican border.

"The most important thing is what they're doing with the Minutemen now," he said. "It's just have more people controlling it and looking at it."

He said he saw a recent clip on Fox News that showed immigrants streaming across the border and that it helped drive home the point for him.

"There was this footage there of just hundreds and hundreds of illegal immigrants coming across the border and border stations," he said. "I mean, what's that? I think that it's the responsibility of the federal government, and they owe it to the people to secure the borders."

He added, however, that he doesn't blame the immigrants for wanting to come to America. He blames the federal government for making it easy and not enforcing the law adequately.

"As I always said, I don't blame poor people from Mexico trying to come up here, because everyone wants to come to the greatest place in the world," Schwarzenegger said. "That's a given. But what I do complain about is that our government cannot secure the borders and keep our country protected."

Asked why he thinks Bush referred to the private border patrols as "vigilantes," Schwarzenegger said he didn't know.

"I'm sure that he's trying to solve the problem as well as anyone can. And he maybe has more information than you and I have. Why he has a policy about the border the way he has, I don't know. ... But, you know, the next time I see him, I will have this conversation."

Nativo Lopez, state president of the Mexican-American Political Association, said he thinks the comments represent "the real Arnold."

"Even the president has referred to these people as vigilantes, and the governor of our state turns around and applauds them," Lopez said.

"It's shameful that a person of his political stature would applaud out-and-out vigilantes."

Margita Thompson, Schwarzenegger's press secretary, said Schwarzenegger, an immigrant himself, was not bashing immigrants.

"The governor was talking about what happens when the government fails to do its job," she said.

"Just as in the recall election, when the government fails to do its job, the people will step in."


About the writer:
The Bee's Gary Delsohn can be
reached at 916-326-5545 or gdelson@sacbee.com