Posted on 06/28/2007 7:29:22 AM PDT by SmithL
Arizona's popular Democratic governor warned her party that failure to deal with immigration this year could hurt Democrats in next year's presidential race, and said it would be better if the party nominee could talk about enforcing the new law rather than have to explain why nothing was done when Democrats control both chambers of Congress.
Gov. Janet Napolitano of Arizona is one of the few U.S. politicians who has managed to thread the needle of immigration politics. Napolitano, a graduate of Santa Clara University, stunned her party early last year by calling for National Guard troops at the border -- and later got them from President Bush. She won a landslide re-election in November in a state where illegal immigration was Topic A by campaigning on "real solutions to real problems," while watching prominent Republicans who called for more fences along the border go down to defeat.
Napolitano flew to Washington to urge Democrats on Wednesday to support a Senate immigration overhaul that would legalize the estimated 12 million people now living in the country illegally, while adding border and worksite enforcement and a large guest worker program, among other things.
The bill is on death's door after an amendment by two Montana Democrats, Sens. Max Baucus and Jon Tester, survived -- effectively derailing what had been a carefully plotted path by the Senate leadership through a minefield of potentially fatal amendments. The Baucus-Tester proposal, opposed by supporters of the bill, would change the employee verification system in the overall bill.
The bill now heads directly to a procedural vote this morning that could kill the overall legislation, leaving supporters desperate and opponents thrilled.
The issue has divided Democrats as well as Republicans. Nine Democrats voted Tuesday to kill the legislation, and more warned that they might...
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
This atrocity is unbelievable. It shows you the absolute sickness that is the arrogance, the power and control syndrome in Washington, that is driving this total insanity.
This could have been the ultimate ‘wedgie’ issue to use against the democrats next year. Thanks Bush, Rove, et al.
>> Napolitano, a graduate of Santa Clara University
I’m starting to understand her better.
How about enforcing existing laws, hmmmm, governor ?
Here’s the equation:
Yes vote on Amnesty Travesty = no re-election campaign donations; no campaign workers; you will be voted out of office; start packing now.
You’d better believe it. This issue crosses party lines.
Popular Az. Governor???? Not in my book. She vetos every good bill that comes out of the Repulican state congress.
Yup. They won't fund the fence. And every R ought to be asking in 2008 why not. Every R ad ought to show the pathetic barbed wire fence and ask how come?
A few years ago, Gov Butch lobbied the AZ General Assembly to give illegals driver’s licenses. Thankfully, the GOP legislators told her, No Way”.
Damn , lady that is the problem, both sides have done nothing but talk about it.
Everyone needs to start to debunk the notion that “it is impossible to send back 12 million people”, BS. Enforce immigration laws, fine employers, take away all the incentives for them (food stamps, free housing, free medical, education, no more anchor babies). If 20 or more million people can still cross our borders in the next few years why can’t 12 million be sent back?
Arizona’s popular Democratic governor warned her party that failure to deal with immigration this year could hurt Democrats in next year’s presidential race”
TRUE ... HERE’S WHY...
Obama and Clinton are majorly in the tank not only for Z visa amnesty but for some particularly odious add-ons and amendments votes as well.
When Bush is out of the way in 2008 in advanced lame-duckery, then the GOP can own immigration issue for real... 1) English as our language 2) Say “no” to amnesty 3) Secure the borders 4) Enforce the law 5) Real voter ID.
.... OBAMA AND CLINTON ARE ON THE WRONG SIDE ON ALL FIVE.
If the GOP tomorrow sinks the bill - MEANING MITCH MCCONNELL AND ENSIGN AND COLEMAN AND HATCH AND BROWNBACK BETTER BE SMART AND VOTE “NO” ON CLOTURE - THEN WE CAN START CALLING THIS BILL A DEMOCRAT BILL.
(NOTE: THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED.)
But first we have to end the careers of prominent pro-amnesty RINOs - Grahamnesty, McVain, etc. to make the distinction clear.
Bush has in effect nullified and destroy a key GOP advantage, just as he destroy fiscal discipline as a key GOP advantage and even tarnished national security ... it will take time, but with each Democrat mis-step we win those issues back.
Every semester I could find an ad that would read something like this: "Wanted. Engineer with Masters Degree and five years experience. Salary $25,000 per year."
I would tell my students that when they saw an ad like that, it meant the employer had already lined up a foreigner for the job, and was going through the motions of "proving" that there were no qualified Americans to take it. This is an old scheme, and has been going on for a couple of decades.
There it is.
Did you know she has an employer enforcement bill sitting on her desk waiting for her signature as we post? Second time a business gets caught hiring illegals....Presto! No business license.
I have a couple of million bucks I’d be willing to bet that if that were the law in CA, the parties would have both exempted themselves...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.