Counter protests planned in Georgia
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Crackdown Advocates Plan Rallies
Advocates of an immigration crackdown say they will rally -- just like the pro-immigration groups did on Monday.
Two separate groups are planning counter demonstrations at the state Capitol.
“My phone has been ringing off the hook for three days,” said activist D.A. King. “There is no universal civil right to live in the U.S.”
King says he plans a counter-rally at the Georgia State Capitol on Monday April 17 -- income tax filing day. He says that before Congress opens any path to citizenship for those already in the U.S., it should secure the borders and punish employers who hire illegal immigrants.
King says he believes that would convince many undocumented workers to go home.
“Nobody breaks into Disneyland if they can't ride the rides. Okay, and by the way, it is considerably more difficult to break into Disneyland than it is to walk into the United States,” King said.
Another grass-roots group plans a rally at the Capitol on Saturday. Meanwhile, a proposed federal crackdown deadlocked in the Senate last week.
Georgia Republican Saxby Chambliss called for a combination of enforcement and humane treatment for workers.
“They are important from a workforce standpoint,” Chambliss said. “There is no question about that. But by the same token, they need to be here for the right reason and they need to come here in the right way.”
At the state Captiol, Gov. Sonny Perdue’s press secretary said he would have nothing to say about the march, but he is expected to sign a crackdown that lawmakers passed last month.
The bill denies state services to most adults in the country illegally. But it stops far short of criminal charges for employers or deportation for workers. It’s sponsor calls it a first step.
“It is clearly the strongest bill that has passed in any state legislature in America, and for that we can be proud,” said state Senator Chip Rogers.
But any solution will take years.
Gov. Perdue’s office said it fielded just under 550 calls on Monday about the immigration bill that's on the governor's desk.
The governor's press secretary said the overwhelming majority of the callers want the bill signed.
