Thread: States are taking immigration into their own hands

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Mary Sanchez: States are taking immigration into their own hands
And, as Kansas' effort against children shows, it isn't pretty



07:33 AM CST on Monday, March 13, 2006


Beware the idle hands of legislators.

With the U.S. Congress bogging down real immigration reform, predictably, other efforts are popping up around the nation.

State and local politicians are jumping at what is being termed the fool's gold lure to sound harsh on immigration. In Kansas, Utah, New Mexico and many other states, efforts have been underfoot to force votes on immigration issues.

The measures are generally not about fixing the many problems inherent with immigration. The power to conquer that feat lies with the federal government. And given the way the House is lining up against the Senate at the national level, true comprehensive reform could be a long way off.

Meanwhile, some politicians smell blood in the water. They sense the void of real solutions might be useful later. So they are filing bills that might sound pleasing to some voters. The idea is that a vote for legislation benefiting immigrants can be used as ammunition later. A desperate candidate can later scream about how his or her opponent "rewarded" illegal behavior. And how they are "soft" on immigration. They can make some odd link between immigrant students who grew up in the United States being in cahoots with a terrorist slipping into the country because of lax immigration laws.

That is the theory, anyway.

Here's a recently unraveled example out of Kansas.

Kansas is one of nine states that had the foresight to grant the children of illegal immigrants the chance to pay in-state college tuition rates if they meet a series of other criteria, including pursuing legal status when it is available to them.

The students are one of the unfortunate consequences of illegal immigration that has gone unchecked for years. While it is understandable that their parents are to blame, the students exist, nonetheless. And because they come attached to the term "illegal," they represent fresh political meat.

In Kansas, a bill was introduced to repeal the original legislation that allowed some students the chance to pay in-state rates. The bill was not passed out of committee. But the House speaker continued to press the issue, swaying votes from folks who didn't feel their committee assignments or other efforts could withstand his disdain.

Eventually, the effort failed. As did similar proposals in Utah and New Mexico.

Recently published comments by two legislators behind the efforts capture some of the truth in the situation.

Kansas Rep. Becky Hutchins said, "Until something is addressed at the federal level, we and other states are just floundering, trying to figure out what to do."

Utah Rep. Glenn Donnelson commented: "We're caught between a rock and a hard place. Immigration is a federal issue, but now that people keep coming, it's a state problem. Until the federal government gets off their duff, this isn't going to get resolved."

Very true.

But voters are becoming savvy to the complicated nature of desperately needed federal immigration reform. They see that illegal immigration has fermented for years, in many instances, to the benefit of the economy. They see the bureaucracies to fix things will not be created overnight.

They are beginning to understand that legally working in the country is not just a matter of filling out a form and paying a fee. That, in fact, government backlogs sometimes place people into the illegal category.

Legislators who pounce on such legislation with the hope it will benefit campaigns later may be left surprised, and possibly defeated. The only thing safe to assume is the mess that is our immigration system will not be improved overnight.

There ought to be a Hippocratic oath for state legislators. Something akin to the pledge physicians take to "do no harm."

"I, (name of elected official), promise to do no harm by filing frivolous legislation with the hope of gathering a way to knock future electoral opponents."

Unfortunately, no oath exists. And federal relief may be a long time in coming.

Mary Sanchez is a columnist for The Kansas City Star. Her e-mail address is msanchez @kcstar.com.

Well the state should if the feds wont.