Free Republic

It's too soon to crown anyone Arizona's next Senator -- but on the same day Rep. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) announced his intent to run, a new poll of Grand Canyon state Republicans shows Sheriff Joe Arpaio leading the field to replace the retiring Sen. Jon Kyl (R). Arpaio has not announced his intention to run for the open Senate seat next year, though there's long been speculation that Arpaio -- an absolute rockstar among the anti-immigration set in the GOP -- is interested in higher office. His name has been mentioned among those that might run for Kyl's old seat,...

A study of an Arizona-style immigration policy in Prince William County, Va., found that it reduced the number of illegal immigrants in the county, but that its effect on violent crime was inconclusive. The study was conducted by the University of Virginia and the Police Executive Research Forum...at the request of the county. It looked at data from 2007, when the policy was proposed, through 2009. Prince William County began enforcing the tough immigration law, similar to one that was passed later in Arizona and is now facing legal challenges, in 2008. The county’s law required police officers to check...

A federal audit gave favorable grades to Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio for his treatment of inmates, amid a Justice Department probe into possible discrimination by the Arizona lawman against Hispanic inmates. Mr. Arpaio's lawyer said the audit grades from the U.S. Marshals Service show the sheriff runs a clean operation and underscore his contention that the probe is politically motivated. The Justice Department said in a statement that its investigation "pertains to allegations of discrimination in jails and police practices that are not covered by the Marshals Service review." Mr. Arpaio has gained a national reputation as an anti-illegal...

JEFFERSON CITY | The number of illegal immigrants arrested by Missouri troopers has fallen significantly in the three years since the state began checking the residency status of everyone booked into jail. The Missouri State Highway Patrol turned up an average of one illegal immigrant per day during the initial months after former Republican Gov. Matt Blunt in August 2007 ordered it to check the immigration status of everyone it incarcerated, according to records obtained under the state Sunshine Law. But the number of illegal immigrants found by those checks declined more than 40 percent in 2008 and an additional...

On Friday, a letter written by Prince William County Police Chief Charlie Deane to Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security John Morton, was released to the public. Chief Deane asked the DHS to stop issuing employment authorization cards to illegal aliens who have deportation proceedings pending against them. In the letter, Chief Deane detailed a recent DUI crash in his county which killed Benedictine nun Sister Denise Mosier. The fatal accident was caused by Carlos Martinelly Montano, 23, an illegal alien from Bolivia who was handed over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement after a previous arrest, but was freed while awaiting...

HOUSTON – Would an immigration reform law like Arizona’s work in Texas? That was the topic of discussion Thursday when some HPD officers met with police officials from Phoenix. Mark Spencer, president of the police union in Phoenix, where officers are already allowed to call immigration officials, said crime has dropped. "It’s not based upon race. It’s based upon conduct," Spencer said. "The clear connection between those statistics is the crime of illegal immigration. We needed to be proactive [and use] common sense." "We’ve got to secure our borders. We’ve got to do what is necessary to make sure that...

Virginia GOP Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli is working toward granting his state’s police officers powers similar to those that Arizona's law allows to check immigration status. Cuccinelli told Fox News’ Greta Van Susteren recently that he’d like Virginia police to be allowed to check the citizenship of anyone they stop or arrest, but that unlike Arizona, he would not require police to do so. “We are not mandating to our law enforcement that they make these inquiries on every stop,” Cucinnelli said. Still, Cuccinelli is pushing his state toward instituting a similar law to the one a federal judge blocked...

DENVER – The federal government is rapidly expanding a program to identify illegal immigrants using fingerprints from arrests, drawing opposition from local authorities and advocates who argue the initiative amounts to an excessive dragnet. The program has gotten less attention than Arizona's new immigration law, but it may end up having a bigger impact because of its potential to round up and deport so many immigrants nationwide.

PHOENIX (Reuters) - Nicaraguan mother Lorena Aguilar hawks a television set and a few clothes on the baking sidewalk outside her west Phoenix apartment block. A few paces up the street, her undocumented Mexican neighbour Wendi Villasenor touts a kitchen table, some chairs and a few dishes as her family scrambles to get out of Arizona ahead of a looming crackdown on illegal immigrants."Everyone is selling up the little they have and leaving," said Villasenor, 31, who is headed for Pennsylvania. "We have no alternative. They have us cornered."The two women are among scores of illegal immigrant families across Phoenix...

PHOENIX - Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has opened a new section of Tent City in time for its 17th anniversary. The new section is called Section 1070 to house violators of the new illegal immigration law, SB 1070. Section 1070 is able to hold up to 100 inmates, but reportedly has room to grow if needed. Sheriff Arpaio said he wants to assure citizens of Maricopa County that there will always be room for violators of the new law.

July 16 – The City of Fremont is preparing to implement the local illegal immigration ordinance passed last month. New forms to obtain a renter’s license and for employer business licensing will be available starting July 27, 2010 in the City Clerk’s Office, Fremont Police Department, and on the City of Fremont website at www.fremontne.gov.The City plans to offer three orientation sessions and will have city representatives available for questions and answers July 27th and July 28th. Q&A sessions have been scheduled in City Council Chambers on the 2nd Floor of the Municipal Building, 400 E Military Ave.Tuesday, July 27...

WASHINGTON (July 15, 2010) – “Hidden Cameras on the Arizona Border 2: Drugs, Guns, and 850 Illegal Aliens” is the Center for Immigration Studies' second web-based film on the impact of illegal alien activity in Arizona. The Center's first video on the subject, “Hidden Cameras on the Arizona Border: Coyotes, Bears, and Trails,” has received over 52,000 views to date. This new 10-minute mini-documentary raises the bar, featuring footage of both illegal-alien entry as well as gun- and drug-smuggling. At minimum, the inescapable conclusion is that hidden cameras reveal a reality that illegal-alien activity is escalating. The hidden camera footage,...

NBC's Lee Cowan, on Thursday's NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams, discovered a stunning result of Arizona's new immigration policies - illegal immigrants are now leaving the state. Cowan opened his piece noting a long line now "stretches around the Mexican Consulate in Phoenix every day" but noticed a twist, as the line was full of "immigrants trying to figure out not how to stay in Arizona, but how to flee it."

President Obama told a U.S. senator he will refuse to do his duty and enforce America’s immigration laws unless Congress cuts a deal with him to allow amnesty for illegal aliens. The president told Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) that he will not make efforts to secure America’s porous borders until such time as Congress passes an amnesty for the estimated 12 million illegal aliens in the country, Connie Hair of Human Events reports. Kyl said Obama pointed out to him in a private meeting that Democrats would lose their leverage for an amnesty if the government stepped up security at...

PHOENIX (AP) -- The North American Aerospace Defense Command says two F-16 fighter planes intercepted an ultralight aircraft near the U.S.-Mexico border in southwestern Arizona. The plane crossed from Mexico into Arizona just after 6 a.m. Sunday. NORAD dispatched two F-16s from Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson and they shadowed the ultralight for about 30 minutes until it flew back into Mexico.

I had hardly received word from the editor that my first report from south east Arizona would be published before more excitement occurred here -- this time even closer to home. Saturday morning the headlines in all the area papers covered the shooting of a Pinal County Deputy by drug smugglers.  The reports indicated the officer was ambushed by drug smugglers using AK-47 rifles.  How do we know these things?  This time the ambush failed and the officer survived.  But there is a lot of news in this report that destroys the liberal reports of those grandmothers crossing the border...

Feathers began flying last Friday hours before Arizona Governor Jan Brewer signed the country’s strictest state law governing illegal immigration, when President Obama called it unfair and promised to have the Justice Department examine it for possible civil rights violations. Criticism of the new law has been fierce. Much of the criticism is, I think, overblown. It is difficult to regard the law’s requirements as deeply unjust. The law begins with a statement of intent: “The intent of this act is to make attrition through enforcement the public policy of all state and local government agencies in Arizona. The provisions...

SACRAMENTO (CBS 5 / AP) ― Meg Whitman, the Republican front-runner in the California gubernatorial primary, said Tuesday that Arizona is taking the wrong approach to illegal immigration with its tough new law. The former eBay chief executive said there are more effective approaches than requiring law enforcement officers to question people about their status if they suspect they are in the country illegally. "I think there's just better ways to solve this problem," Whitman said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. "I'm a big believer in, 'What are the two or three things that will make the...

Governor Jan Brewer was in tune with the voters and signed the first bill in the USA by any state to enforce the law and try to do something about the invasion of her state for foreign national law breaking aliens. Arizona State Senator Russell Pearce deserves the credit for crafting this bill and getting it through his state legislature. Last night CBS did it's usual politically correct take on these events, but did inject this very important item. Meet Steve Montenegro, himself an immigrant from El Salvador and now a member of the Arizona State Legislature. Here is a...

Bonus: Geraldo warns an Hispanic Congressman that he might get stopped in AZ for "walking while Hispanic".

The fight over Senate Bill 1070 took to the streets of downtown Phoenix, as riot Police were called to the Capitol to control an unruly group of protesters. Witnesses say a group protesting against SB1070 began to fight with a man who was for the controversial immigration bill. Police tried escorting that man away from the scene, fearing for his safety, when they too came under attack by people throwing items, including water bottles. A young man was arrested during that melee. Things calmed down moments later, but riot Police remained at the capital to maintain some sort of order.

Signed bill and giving speech now

An Arizona state bill that would give law enforcement greater authority over arresting illegal immigrants has caused national uproar and could set the stage for court battles over how far states can go when it comes to immigration policies. The bill would it make it a crime for immigrants to have no alien registration document, and undocumented citizens would be charged with "trespassing" simply for being in Arizona. The bill allows police to question and arrest people without warrant if there is "reasonable suspicion" about their immigration status. It would become illegal for people to employ illegal immigrants or to...

Two years before Arizona celebrates its centennial as the last of the 48 contiguous United States, I'm beginning to wonder if they can truly make it until 2012. If Republican Gov. Jan Brewer signs into law the harsh anti-immigration law recently passed by state lawmakers -- making racial profiling the law of the law in a manner in which the term "police state" is not hyberbole -- then the desert paradise will all but have seceded from the Union. Not legally -- not yet, anyway, although in a few years who knows? -- but morally. Here's the proposed law: The bill,...

Lawmakers in the Arizona Senate voted 17 to 11 to approve the bill, widely regarded as the toughest measure yet taken by any U.S. state to curb illegal immigration. The state's House of Representatives approved the measure last week. Governor Jan Brewer, a Republican, has five days to veto the bill or sign it into law. Immigration is a bitterly fought issue in the United States, where some 10.8 million illegal immigrants live and work in the shadows, although it has been eclipsed in recent months by a healthcare overhaul and concern over the economy.

The bill passed this week reflects the government's belief that illegal immigrants will leave or stay away if conditions are harsh enough. Critics say it doesn't work. Reporting from Phoenix and Tucson For years Arizona's government has tried to deter unlawful immigration with a consistent approach -- make life for illegal immigrants so uncomfortable and uncertain that they will leave, or never come in the first place. So this week, when the House of Representatives passed what's viewed as against illegal immigration in the nation, it was the continuation of a pattern that has been widely popular in the state....

LOS ANGELES (AFP) – Immigrant rights groups Wednesday slammed Arizona lawmakers after they approved a bill which will allow police officers to determine whether suspects are in the United States legally. Arizona's House of Representatives passed the bill by a margin of 35 votes to 21 during a session on Tuesday, the legislature's website showed, mirroring a similar measure passed by the border state's Senate earlier this year. The bill will now proceed to Arizona's Republican Governor Jan Brewer to be signed into law. The bill makes it a misdemeanor offense for an individual to lack proper immigration paperwork and...

The bill mandates that police determine people's immigration status if there is a 'reasonable suspicion' they are undocumented. Immigrant rights groups say it amounts to a police state. Reporting from Denver Arizona lawmakers on Tuesday approved what foes and supporters agree is the toughest measure in the country against undocumented immigrants, making it a crime to be an illegal immigrant in Arizona and allowing local police to determine whether people are in the country legally. The measure, long sought by opponents of illegal immigration, passed in the state House of Representatives. The state Senate passed a similar measure earlier this...

In an initiative kicked into high gear as a result of the shooting death last month of longtime Douglas-area rancher Robert Krentz by a suspected illegal alien, Arizona ranching families will gather at the Arizona Capitol today to demand action to secure the border. Southern Arizona ranchers have been meeting with local officials for the past 18 months, and the Arizona Cattlemen’s Association has developed a plan of action — “Restore Our Border” — to secure the border.

"There is no doubt in my mind," said former Gov. Jim Edgar this morning, "that the immigrant community brought a vitality to the Illinois economy. Often when I would be out and about, visiting the various communities, I would meet with recent immigrants and I would see their enthusiasm to move ahead, to be successful, to work, to raise a family -- all those things that are vital to having a strong economy here in Illinois." Edgar's remarks came during his keynote address at the launch of the newly-formed Illinois Business Immigration Coalition, an iniative spearheaded by the Illinois Coailition...

In a dramatic turnaround from 16 years ago, Californians now overwhelmingly favor giving illegal immigrants a "path to legalization'' rather than punishing them by denying them a public education and social services, according to a poll unveiled Monday. The survey of 1,515 registered voters showed that 67 percent of Californians support a two-pronged approach to solving the illegal immigration problem: implementing stronger enforcement at the border while setting up a legalization path for undocumented immigrants who admit they broke the law, perform community service, learn English and pay fines and back taxes. Seventy percent favor stricter border controls and a...

One hour of pedaling equals one hour of television viewing for the inmates, according to Arpaio.

James G. Gimpel is a professor of government at the University of Maryland, College Park. He can be reached at jgimpel@gvpt.umd.edu. This Backgrounder examines the political implications of large-scale immigration. Between 1980 and 2008, 25.2 million people were granted permanent residency (green cards) by the United States. A comparison of voting patterns in presidential elections across counties over the last three decades shows that large-scale immigration has caused a steady drop in presidential Republican vote shares throughout the country. Once politically marginal counties are now safely Democratic due to the propensity of immigrants, especially Latinos, to identify and vote Democratic....

Former Congressman and anti-illegal immigration hawk Tom Tancredo today posted a YouTube ratcheting up his criticism of Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, calling on her to resign. Tancredo is fresh from a Tea Party appearance in Southern Arizona this weekend that took a turn when borderland rancher and Tancredo acquaintance Robert Krentz was killed by smugglers. Tancredo called on Napolitano to send troops to the border Sunday. His YouTube today turns up the heat on Napolitano and keeps attention focused on the dangerous conditions on the Arizona border that lead to the death of Krentz.

PHOENIX -- An Arizona House committee has advanced a bill that would criminalize the presence of illegal immigrants in the state.

It’s not that I liked Geraldo before. I don’t actually know anyone who watches his show other than on YouTube. But..he’s now officially become the ‘Rachel Maddow’ of FOX News. This is how he started his interview with America’s Sheriff Joe Arpaio: With the exception of CNN’s Lou Dobbs. For millions of American latinos the most unpopular person in this country is my next guest the so called toughest cop in the nation. The highly controversial sheriff of Maricopa County, Joe Arpaio. And as I said earlier with Gov. Huckabee, Joe has been recently been stripped of federal authority to...

MESA, AZ -- The man who may run for governor still values his role as the "toughest sheriff in America." "This Sheriff will continue to enforce the illegal immigration laws," Sheriff Joe Arpaio told a packed room of Mesa Community College students Thursday evening. During his speech, he railed against the media and answered questions ranging from immigration to drugs. Arpaio said he is not backing down on his roundups of illegal immigrants, despite the federal government's investigation of him in what some say is racial profiling. He also took some jabs at Janet Napolitano. "She didn't call me," said...

PHOENIX – The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office in Arizona has launched a two-day, countywide crime and immigration sweep that authorities say will focus on drop houses, drug violators and human smuggling vehicles. Four hundred deputies and volunteer posse members are taking part in the patrols. The sweep, which began Thursday, is Sheriff Joe Arpaio's 14th since early 2008. During the sweeps, deputies flood an area of a city — in some cases heavily Latino areas — to seek out traffic violators and arrest other alleged lawbreakers.

All United States citizens may be required to carry a biometric I.D. card! That's not Orwell's Big Brother speaking. Rather Democrat Chuck Schumer (D- New York), and Republican Lindsay Graham (R- South Carolina) have devised new legislation to mandate that every worker carry a government I.D. card to prove his citizenship. The card must be carried every day and may be checked by employers and any governmental authority upon request. All U.S. citizens would be required to carry an ID cards according to this plan. It's meant to keep companies from hiring illegal immigrants. No matter where you apply for...

Rahm Emanuel has emerged as the major problem within the White House on reform of immigration. A New York Times magazine article due out this Sunday reports that Hispanic leader in Congress believe that he does not take the the issue seriously and is the person blocking progress. The New York Times writer Peter Baker reports that "The Congressional Hispanic Caucus say he does not pay attention to their issues. Hispanic lawmakers blame him for a provision inserted into the Senate health care legislation that would bar illegal immigrants from buying policies on new insurance exchanges even with their own...

EAGLE PASS — As the sun dips toward the horizon, Shelby Park becomes an idyllic place, a rare patch of manicured green along the Texas-Mexico border. Kids practice soccer on the expansive sports fields, and joggers make their afternoon revolutions. A couple of Border Patrol trucks hover in the parking lot alongside the dense stands of cane that hide the Rio Grande from view. Above, two international bridges funnel traffic between Eagle Pass and its Mexican counterpart, Piedras Negras, Coahuila . Jose Luis Zuniga, watching his two sons practice soccer kicks, takes in the park's newest addition: an $11...

Scroll down to the section called: "State Trooper Prevails Against ACLU and Illegal Aliens in Bogus Lawsuit" http://www.fairus.org/site/News2/1929724780?page=NewsArticle&id=22433&security=1601&news_iv_ctrl=1012#1 On February 4, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit dismissed a lawsuit that had been filed by the ACLU against a Rhode Island state trooper who contacted Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) upon discovering that a group of foreign nationals he encountered were illegal aliens. In dismissing the suit, the First Circuit held that the ACLU – who had sued the state trooper and the state of Rhode Island on behalf of the illegal aliens – could not...

Many people would have us believe that it would not actually be possible to round up and deport all illegal aliens in the U.S. This is most definitely not the case. It is merely a lack of resolve to do so. How can I say this? Easy. It’s been done successfully multiple times in the past. In fact, three of our most well-known presidents initiated successful illegal alien deportation programs. First, President Herbert Hoover, during the great depression, ordered the deportation of all illegal aliens in order to make jobs available to American citizens that desperately needed work. My question...

Fed up lawmakers in a Mexican border state plagued with huge numbers of illegal immigrants are increasingly taking matters into their own hands by passing laws to control the crisis long neglected by the federal government. Weeks after an Arizona State House panel approved a pair of measures intended to curb illegal immigration, the Senate has passed a law prohibiting sanctuary cities in the state. The measure allows illegal aliens to be charged with trespassing, makes it unlawful for anyone—documented or undocumented—seeking work to enter a vehicle stopped on the street and penalizes drivers who impede traffic in an attempt...

Some business owners at a San Juan Capistrano shopping center say routine checks by the U.S. Border Patrol are scaring away customers and hurting their bottom lines. Store owners at Alipaz Plaza at Del Obispo and Alipaz streets told Mayor Lon Uso during his Mayor's Walk this week that they want the city to ask the Border Patrol to stop going to the shopping center.

An Arizona sheriff said he planned to defy Washington's attempts to roll back his staunch enforcement of federal immigration law, a move that could put him on a collision course with the U.S. government. Late last year, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the largest arm of the Department of Homeland Security, stripped Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio of the authority to use 100 of his deputies to enforce federal immigration in his jurisdiction, which includes Phoenix. The customs agency took the action because Mr. Arpaio's aggressive immigration crackdowns had drawn criticism from human-rights groups and had run afoul of the...

A federal grand jury in Arizona began hearing a federal prosecutor’s allegations that the popular Maricopa County sheriff, Joe Arpaio abused his authority. Sheriff Arpaio garnered national attention with his tough immigration enforcement and, to many Americans, is known as "America's Sheriff." The Department of Justice is investigating Sheriff Arpaio for abuse of power and his questionable conduct aimed at local officials who routinely oppose his no-nonsense brand of policing and jail managing. Almost immediately after being installed in the White House, members of the national security team such as Attorney General Eric Holder and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano...

He is Arizona’s most popular politician and arguably America’s toughest sheriff, but today Joe Arpaio faces his biggest challenge: a grand jury investigation that could cost him his office. “It is not right for law enforcement to abuse its authority in this way,” said Paul Charlton, a former US Attorney now representing one of Arpaio’s legal targets. “If you find yourself living in a place where law enforcement investigates its enemies and accuses judges who rule against them of crimes, you are either living in a third world county or Maricopa country.” The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office is America’s fourth...

A federal grand jury in Phoenix is looking at abuse of power allegations against the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office and Sheriff Joe Arpaio. County Communications Director Cari Gerchick told the Phoenix Business Journal Thursday night that County Manager David Smith and County Budget Director Sandi Smith have met with federal prosecutors and will appear before a federal grand jury in Phoenix on Jan. 13. Gerchick said the grand jury is looking at abuse of power charges against the MCSO and Arpaio. Sandra Raynor, spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Phoenix declined comment. "I have no comment as grand jury...

FRAMINGHAM — State Sen. Scott Brown, R-Wrentham, today filed legislation that would require the state Attorney General to receive and document proof of citizenship or right to work in the United States for wage enforcement cases. Historically, the Attorney General’s office has adopted a policy of not asking about immigration status of employees when proceeding with a wage enforcement case against an employer. Under the bill filed by Brown, who is also a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, wage enforcement cases would require valid proof of citizenship or immigration status before proceeding. “This is a responsible and effective immigration reform...