Thread: Six Degrees North Of Arizona: Nebraska's War On Immigration

Six Degrees North Of Arizona: Nebraska's War On Immigration
John Wenz | April 11, 2011

Nebraska is starting to look a lot like Arizona—legally, at least. Over the past few years, the state has enacted a spate of anti-immigration laws; and whether it's State Senator Charlie Janssen's unconstitutional witch hunt against all brown people, an ordinance in Fremont that bars employers from hiring illegal immigrants and landlords from renting to them, or, the latest assault, a law that denies public assistance to legal immigrants who have lived in the country less than five years, it seems the legislature and governor have one thing on their minds: making Nebraska a less friendly, less tolerant state. In February, Governor Dave Heineman ordered the legislature to strip undocumented workers of pre-natal care, a move that drew sharp condemnation even from traditional Republican allies like Nebraska Right to Life .

But it wasn't always like this.

Immigration didn't become a center-stage issue in the state until the 2006 primary race for governor. Back then, Dave Heineman was a relatively new governor, having ascended to the post only a couple years before when then-Gov. Mike Johanns joined Bush's cabinet as Secretary of Agriculture. As Johanns's lieutenant, Heineman had had little visibility, and his two years as governor had allowed him scant time to connect with voters. Now he faced a tough competitive primary against Congressman Tom Osbourne, a center-right Republican from the western end of the state who had enjoyed a 25-year career as the head coach of the Cornhuskers football team.

Though Osborne was popular among his largely rural constituents, he had spent much of his time in Nebraska in Lincoln, and in the primaries, connected more with urban voters. Heineman, seeing the opportunity for a primary victory, campaigned heavily in rural areas. Osbourne was a soft-spoken, low-profile congressman, amenable to bipartisanship, famously teaming with outspoken liberal Ernie Chambers as spokesmen for a gambling ban in the state. He also differed with his party on issues such as the death penalty, where he claimed his years as football coach had shown him a justice system disproportionately skewed towards penalizing minorities.

Heineman, on the other hand, was more of a party operative. He'd worked for two Nebraska congressmen, then served four years in the Fremont city council before first campaigning for (and winning) office as state treasurer in the '90s. He was appointed lieutenant governor in 2001. Along the way, he'd established conservative bona fides and become known as a party man and something of a firebrand.

Experience had taught Heineman that a trigger issue for rural voters was the supposed looming threat of immigration, and in a nakedly political move, he made it his campaign issue.

Playing Off Immigration Fears
While people outside the state may be unaware of it, Nebraska sees frequent immigration both through relocation of refugee populations and workers (both documented and undocumented) seeking employment, mostly in the meat-packing industry. Omaha is home to the majority of these plants, but they also crop up in cities like Lexington and Fremont. (The metro area of Omaha has a population of about 865,000; Lexington and Fremont are much smaller, with populations of about 10,000 and 26,000 respectively.)

The immigration issue would be a non-starter in a city as diverse as Omaha. But it played well in rural areas where there were growing fears of "takeover." Places like Lexington (a town famously highlighted as a "rural ghetto" in Eric Schlosser's Fast Food Nation), where the IBP plant had brought in a wave of Hispanic workers, had become one of the few majority minority communities in the state outside of Native American reservations—and these changes made many rural voters uneasy.

That Heineman was going to use immigration as a wedge issue in the primary first became evident when, in 2006, Nebraska's legislature moved to pass a state version of the DREAM Act, a bill that would have enabled children of undocumented workers to gain in-state college tuition provided they met certain educational criteria. Heineman vetoed it.

In campaign ads, Heineman announced: “Illegal immigration puts a burden on our taxpayers." While the act ultimately passed after a veto override, the move cemented Heineman's status as the anti-immigration candidate. Heineman hammered away at the message in a series of mailings that called him “the only candidate for governor who opposes giving in-state tuition to illegal immigrants.â€

As a Nebraskan. this article upsets me.

Hi Tampa_Two, welcome to ALIPAC. I'm in Nebraska also. From your name, I would have guessed you're in Florida. I lived there also for several years. Of course, when it comes to this issue, it doesn't matter what state you're in, the invasion has spread almost everywhere now.

Do you have a link for this article? ALIPAC usually requires links on article posts. Thank-you.

Whatever the cause, in Nebraska, the mood remains sour. By playing upon this unease, Heineman has continued to see his popularity soar, winning reelection last fall by a wide margin against yet another sacrificial lamb Democrat. In a year that saw the rise of the Tea Party, Heineman stuck to his "loyal conservative" credentials—offering up continued support for anti-immigration laws.

Gee, going by the snide sounding writings/rantings of this guy John Wenz I'd wager to bet he's a lib.

I found the link. Some publication I've never heard of, that apparently will publish any radical open-borders writer.

http://www.theawl.com/2011/04/six-degre ... mmigration

"He really likes Brussel sprouts and cats."

He also believes in the tooth fairy and that all peole are peace loving and wonderful. All this while America is building and Hispanic population that is rising up to become revanchists.

This after his opponent Osborne went on record saying, “I really don't think you punish children for what their parents did."

Is that so? We don't seem to have a problem punishing children of Americans who break laws, don't we? Why should children of illegal aliens be given special privileges?

The immigration issue would be a non-starter in a city as diverse as Omaha. But it played well in rural areas where there were growing fears of "takeover."

It's no longer "diverse" when the growth is from one ethnic group.

[quote]“Did these public demonstrations actually accelerate the climate of anti-immigrant policies to which the marches themselves were responding?â€

@Builditnow...sorry I know the rules, but had a brain fart and forgot. That's how angry the article made me(that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it ). Also, I'm not from Tampa...it's more football-related than a geography thing.

A few quotes from the article:

[b]"In addition, Janssen has sought to de-fund the Mexican-American Commission of Nebraska, and destroy the Nebraska DREAM Act through amendments to the state's e-verify laws. He's also drawn sharp rebukes from Somos Republicans for his repeated use of the term “anchor baby.â€

I would call this article SLANDEROUS! The slander starts with this phrase at the beginning of the article:

State Senator Charlie Janssen's unconstitutional witch hunt against all brown people,