Day: May 1, 2010

Congressman Duncan Hunter, Jr. And The Constitution

Freshman Congressman Duncan Hunter, Jr. of California, the son of his namesake who was a long term Congressman and a Presidential candidate in the Republican campaign of 2008, has outraged many with his proposal that children born of illegal immigrants be deported with their parents!

Hunter, who is the only combat veteran of both the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars to be serving in the Congress, had a great advantage being elected to Congress, being the son of a famous father, and running to replace him in his seat. He is to be respected for his military commitment to his country, but on this specific issue, he is totally wrong!

The Constitution makes it clear that if someone is born within the territorial limits of the United States, he or she is a citizen of the United States, and cannot be deported!

Therefore, this kind of suggestion is counter productive, and only incites Tea Party Movement people and racial supremacists who are using the Arizona law to promote their anti Latino and Hispanic motivations!

Hunter should use his time in Congress, instead of dividing people and promoting hysteria and panic, to help arrive at a conclusion that is contributory toward a solution of the illegal immigration problem!

Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio, Civil Liberties And Civil Rights: The New George Wallace In The Making?

Maricopa Country, Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio has long been the center of controversy in his approach to civil liberties and civil rights. Now he is pondering running for Governor of Arizona as a strong supporter of the recently enacted state illegal immigration law!

Arpaio has a tough image as a crime fighter in the Phoenix area, but has been accused of discrimination and civil rights abuses, which he brushes off.

His image as America’s toughest sheriff includes a recent raid which led to the arrest of 73 illegal immigrants; housing prisoners in tents, and making them wear pink underwear; and feeding them on less than a dollar a day!

Arpaio has faced charges of abusive practices by the Justice Department and the American Civil Liberties Union without being very upset about it.

Were he to run for Governor, it would further incite the issue of illegal immigration, and it is certain that were he to win the office, the issue would become much more confrontational than even the signing of the recent legislation by present Governor Jan Brewer!

With Arpaio’s approach and attitude of defying the federal government, he would be to Latinos and Hispanics what Governor George Wallace of Alabama was to African Americans and civil rights in the tumultuous decade of the 1960s! 🙁