Thread: Sonora governor says Napolitano had no choice on immigration

Sonora governor says Napolitano had no choice on immigration law
BY HOWARD FISCHER, CAPITOL MEDIA SERVICES
July 10, 2007 - 5:38PM
Hermosillo - The governor of Sonora said he does not blame his Arizona counterpart for signing what is probably the toughest law in the United States to crack down on employment of undocumented workers.

"There are some things she has to do by law," Eduardo Bours told Capitol Media Services. He said approval of the measure by the Legislature left her no real choices.

The law, set to take effect in January, allows a judge to suspend any state licenses of businesses that knowingly hire someone not legally permitted to work in the United States. A second offense within two years means mandatory loss of the ability to do business in Arizona.

"I think it's wrong," said Bours who, along with Napolitano, participated in a daylong conference on regional economic competitiveness here.

"At the end of the day I don't think it's a good idea," he continued. "But she had to do it."

Bours also said he does not believe Napolitano agrees with the new law. But the governor's own statements - at least in the United States - suggest otherwise.

"I have said for a long time you can't deal with immigration simply by border walls and border security measures," Napolitano told Capitol Media Services last week when she signed the new law.

"You must deal with the underlying labor migration," she continued. "What we're trying to do here in Arizona is to shut down the businesses that, not once but twice, are found to have intentionally hired illegal labor.{

On Tuesday, Napolitano said her decision to sign the law has had no impact on her relationship with Bours.

"He and I both recognize that each country has the right and the obligation to enforce its immigration laws," she said.

"What we really need to be talking about as a country is why some of the U.S. immigration laws don't match economic reality, why we need to have more visas, why we need to allow more people who are coming in to work, who have skills and training, to do that," Napolitano said. That, however, needs to come from Congress.

"And until it's done in Washington, D.C., Arizona's going to enforce the law that we have."

http://www.yumasun.com/news/law_35178__ ... ation.html

Well, I'm certainly glad to hear that doing what is in the best interest of AZ and U.S. citizens hasn't damaged the relationship between her and the Sonoran Glovernor.

As if friendships with foreign officials should have anything to do with anything