Enforce Strict Immigration Laws
The Intelligencer
POSTED: December 3, 2008


Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano has received mixed reviews from those who believe the United States is doing too little to crack down on illegal immigration. Her views on the subject will become much more important next year, when she becomes the nation's new secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.

President-elect Barack Obama announced Monday that he will nominate Napolitano for the post. There is virtually no doubt that she will be confirmed by the Senate.

Obviously, the Department of Homeland Security is one of the most important in Washington. Terrorist attacks last week in India made that clear.

But the department also is in charge of enforcing immigration laws. With as many as 12 million illegal immigrants in the country now, that issue is a very important one.

As we noted Tuesday in an editorial about Obama's choices for secretary of state and secretary of defense, Cabinet members' primary duty is to do what their presidents tell them. Napolitano, then, will have to abide by Obama's policies on illegal immigration.

Still, she will have input in formulating those policies, particularly in regard to the tricky details of how to keep illegal immigrants out of the United States and what to do about them if they get here.

Napolitano has criticized plans for the lengthy fence along the U.S.-Mexico border. At the same time she has called for more Border Patrol agents to interdict illegal immigrants and drug smugglers. She also favors a sort of "amnesty" for some illegal immigrants, providing they pay stiff fines.

It remains to be seen precisely how Napolitano and Obama will address the problem. We urge them to reject politically correct suggestions, however, in favor of strict enforcement of immigration laws
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