PERSPECTIVE: Congress should not scrap 287(g)
By The News & Messenger | Prince William County
Published: January 2, 2010
8 Comments

Questionable moves are being made on high, and Prince William County may suffer as a result. A bill introduced in Congress Dec. 15 would kill the county’s 287(g) program while bolstering other areas of immigration enforcement, such as border security.

Of course, PWC is not being singled out for this dishonor — the program would be scrapped for all jurisdictions — but not being the only one isn’t any comfort.

This newspaper has certainly had its issues with the county illegal immigration policies, but the 287(g) program at its core seems to be a good, effective way to confront the problem.

For those of you who don’t know, 287(g) gives local officials the power to start the deportations process against certain criminal illegal aliens.

It is a popular program because, regardless of what you think about illegal immigrants, nobody wants criminals, especially dangerous ones, on their streets. This program simply says, “If you’re illegal and you commit crime, don’t expect to stay in the United States.â€