Lonegan attacks Corzine on immigrant 'entitlement'
Friday, April 3, 2009
BY ELIZABETH LLORENTE
NorthJersey.com


Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Lonegan, who made headlines as Bogota mayor for his vocal support of hard-line policies on illegal immigration, Thursday accused Governor Corzine of endorsing a system of entitlements for illegal immigrants.

Lonegan cited Corzine's statement on Monday that he would allow illegal immigrants to attend state public colleges at in-state tuition rates. Corzine said he would urge state legislators to pass in-state tuition bills that have languished for years.

"The panel had a radical agenda," Lonegan said. "The report and recommendations are chock-full of left-wing nonsense that would make this state a magnet for undocumented or illegal workers. It encourages a culture of entitlement, saying to people, 'You come into this country, legally or illegally, and we're going to counsel you on how to take advantage of entitlements.' "

The in-state tuition issue was one of many raised in a report by an immigration advisory panel that Corzine established in 2007 to study how legal and illegal immigrants could be integrated into New Jersey society. Among its recommendations were in-state tuition for undocumented students, who now must pay out-of-state rates, and allowing illegal immigrants driving privileges after consulting with federal officials.

Lonegan also took issue with the panel's extensive arguments for providing more bilingual services for immigrants.

"Why should doctors in public health be required to provide interpreters at our expense?" Lonegan said. "This grows government and government programs, which means taxpayers would pay more. These things would be a bigger drain on the state's resources."

As Bogota's mayor, Lonegan pressed for McDonald's to remove a Spanish-language billboard. He also unsuccessfully sought to make English the official language of Bogota, a move — together with the McDonald's matter — that some Hispanics saw as an attack on them.

He also expressed an interest in having the borough police deputized to enforce immigration laws. But then he grabbed headlines again after borough police said that they had discovered two illegal immigrants working at homes that Lonegan owned. Lonegan said he had asked the immigrants, who were day laborers, if they were here legally and they said they were.

E-mail: llorente@northjersey.com


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