Thread: Ellsworth blasts Coats over 1984 amnesty vote

Ellsworth blasts Coats over 1984 amnesty vote

Dems' candidate for Senate says opponent's record is inconsistent.

By Deanna Martin
of The Associated Press

INDIANAPOLIS — Democratic Rep. Brad Ellsworth said Thursday that his Republican opponent in the race for U.S. Senate is saying one thing and doing another when it comes to immigration.

Ellsworth told reporters that former Sen. Dan Coats claims to oppose amnesty for illegal immigrants – but in 1984, then-Rep. Coats voted for a House bill that would have provided legal status to some illegal immigrants already living in the U.S. The bill did not become law, but Ellsworth said he would never vote for amnesty.

“This is a pattern that we’re seeing develop about saying one thing to people in Indiana and doing something different in D.C.,â€

I was in my late twenties during the great amnesty debates of the early 80's and I fell for the promises of a "One Time Only Amnesty." The enforcement laws that were part of the 86 IRCA satisfied me. What I didn't realize then is that in a backroom somewhere both Dems and Repubs made an agreement to enact those laws but then TURN A BLIND EYE WHEN SANCTUARIES WERE DECLARED.

I wish I were able to research News Media articles from back in 88 when Mayor Koch declared NYC a Sanctuary. Did any of the politicians that championed the IRCA laws stand up and say that was unconstitutional?

Chuck Schumer?

New York City Mayor Edward Koch issued an executive order prohibiting city agencies from barring illegal aliens from signing up for welfare benefits. Municipal officials could be fired if they attempted to discourage illegal aliens from obtaining taxpayer-provided services. Illegal immigrants who can prove that they have lived in the city for more than two years are even entitled to financial benefits denied to American citizens from out of town. A flier signed by Koch and distributed by the Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs in May, 1988, declared, 'Immigrant New Yorkers It's Your City Too! Documented or undocumented, you are entitled to many City services....' Illegal aliens were assured that 'It is the City's policy not to report you to immigration authorities....I urge you to make use of them [city welfare and education benefits] so you and your family can have the best possible life.' Mayor Koch went on to emphasize that, 'Many of these services are free.' It is no surprise that New York, a city perpetually on the brink of bankruptcy, has become a destination of preference for hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens.

http://www.thesocialcontract.com/artman ... _192.shtml

Thanks W4C! A wealth of info there and the article you quoted from is from 1992!

You are welcome.