Thread: Huffman portrays new stance as border hawk

http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/border/142325

Published: 08.16.2006

Huffman portrays new stance as border hawk
By Rob O'Dell
ARIZONA DAILY STAR
Today: We look at an ad for Republican Steve Huffman.
The race: Congressional District 8 Republican primary.
The medium: A 30-second television ad.
The message: Viewers see a dark background with Huffman on one knee on the desert floor, holding a long flashlight.
Huffman says, "Millions of illegal immigrants cross our borders. We don't know who they are or where they're going. It puts a terrible strain on Arizona law enforcement and puts our families' safety at risk." Shots of a police car speeding down the road and a person getting arrested play as he is speaking.
He continues: "We need a new immigration policy that puts national security first. More manpower and technology to secure our borders, instant verification of worker status. No amnesty and no taxpayer-funded benefits for those here illegally." The ad concludes, "In Congress you can trust me to protect our borders and win the war on terror."
The intent: To portray Huffman as a hawk on border enforcement and tell people he will be tough on illegal immigration.
Fact check: In 2006, after he announced he was a U.S. congressional candidate, Huffman voted for many of the border bills that advocates for tougher border laws supported.
That included voting for bills that made trespassing by illegal immigrants a felony and allowed police officers to ask someone they detained about immigration status; voting for a bill that required Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System workers to verify an applicant's immigration status before providing benefits; and voting to allow the governor to deploy the National Guard to the border.
He also voted for the omnibus illegal-immigration bill, which included employer sanctions, prohibiting the award of punitive damages to illegal residents, and creating residency requirements for public- education benefits and child assistance.
In 2005, Huffman's votes where less hawkish on the border.
Huffman voted against a bill to prevent illegal immigrants from getting public adult education or child program assistance.
He voted against a bill that would have allowed state and local peace officers to enforce immigration laws. He also voted against a bill forbidding public entities that require identification to provide services from accepting identification documents from another country.
Although Huffman opposes amnesty, Congressional Quarterly lists him as supporting a guest-worker program, and Huffman's Web site says he supports a "temporary" worker plan.
Huffman was also listed as an opponent of Proposition 200 in 2004, which denies some public benefits to illegal immigrants and imposes strict proof of residency requirements for voting.

This is the kind of candidate I am afraid of, one who speake with a forked tongue. He will try to talk the talk to get elected, then he will do just as he dam well pleases and to hell with his constituents!