Thread: Crackdown on AZ IIlegals Stirs National Immigration Debate

Crackdown on Arizona IIlegals Stirs National Immigration Debate
Monday , June 30, 2008
By Lindsay Stewart

Sheriffs in Phoenix, Ariz., have launched an aggressive crackdown on illegal aliens as part of a growing movement by local officials to help prevent illegal immigration.

Maricopa County sheriffs have instituted a zero tolerance policy — knocking on doors and arresting those suspected of living in the country illegally.

Sheriff Joe Arpaio said the law is clear cut. “Our policy is if we come across any illegal ... you are arrested. You don’t get a ticket. You get to appear before a judge later on.â€

[quote]“The Bush administration has launched a low-intensity warfare campaign of terror, of raids, of deportation, that has taken its toll on the immigrant communities throughout the country,â€

Correction: [quote]Other immigration experts also say enforcement alone will not solve the immigration problem, and add that the federal government needs to take more action. “If I had to grade the administration right now, I would say maybe a C plus or a C minus,â€

Bingo! We have a winner...

Recent statistics indicate that enforcement of existing immigration laws — both at local and state levels — has been successful in stemming the tide of illegal immigrants coming into the country

Yep, enforcement works. You just have to get serious and do it.

[quote]In 2000, 1.6 million people illegally trying to enter the United States were apprehended. This year, over half a million illegal immigrants were arrested — a sign that increased enforcement of existing laws is actually stopping immigrants from getting across the border. In fact, so much progress has been made on the state and local level that Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff thinks the border could be secure by 2011.

“For 30 years there was an image that built up that the government talked a good talk about enforcing the law against illegal immigration but that we always backed down. Now we are not backing down. Now we are standing up. We’re building the fence. We’re doubling the border patrol. We are arresting people on the interior that are illegally working,â€

Bingo again!!!

But officials note that illegal immigration is a crime — and there must be consequences.

"If you break the law, you don't get a free bite at the apple," said Chertoff. "We enforce the law and deport you."