Clueless in Arizona
Washington, DC - As news reports indicate, the Obama Administration plans to mount a legal challenge to Arizona's anti-immigrant law. Recent comments by the bill's signer, Gov. Jan Brewer (R-AZ), underscore the need for the federal government to intervene in just such a manner.
Repeating comments she made earlier this month, Gov. Brewer said last Friday, "Well, we all know that the majority of the people that are coming to Arizona and trespassing are now becoming drug mules.  They're coming across our borders in huge numbers. The drug cartels have taken control of the immigration."
According to Frank Sharry, Executive Director of America's Voice, "These outrageous and false statements lead to one of two conclusions: Gov. Brewer either actually believes that most undocumented immigrants are drug smugglers - a conclusion so far from reality that it raises disturbing questions about her grasp of public policy and basic statistics - or she is purposefully mischaracterizing the truth and demonizing immigrants for political purposes.  Either scenario shows that she's hopelessly unfit to be directing immigration policy and that the federal government desperately needs to provide adult supervision over immigration policy."
Brewer's comments drew immediate condemnations even from backers of the legislation - for example, T.J. Bonner of the National Border Patrol Council, said that Brewer's comments were "clearly not the case," while Senator John McCain (R-AZ) expressed disagreement with Gov. Brewer's statement while appearing on Meet the Press.
In reality, as FBI statistics demonstrate, crime is not rising in Arizona and Phoenix remains one of the safest big cities in the country.  Additionally, as Newsweek recently highlighted, "big cities with large immigrant populations are safer places to live" and that rising levels of immigration are "partially responsible" for low levels of crime.  The Immigration Policy Center also arrived at this same conclusion in a detailed policy review of the relationship between immigration and crime.
Said Sharry, "As if we needed another reminder, Brewer's comments and the continued demonization of immigrants for political purposes show that we need Washington to step up and enact a coherent, comprehensive and national policy.  In absence of Washington addressing immigration reform, bigotry and ignorance will continue to fill the vacuum."  
America's Voice -- Harnessing the power of American voices and American values to win common sense immigration reform.

President Obama Speaks Up for Immigration Reform

President Obama made a compelling case for why Congress needs to enact bipartisan comprehensive immigration reform, why the Arizona immigration law is the wrong response to growing frustration with inaction in Washington, and why the only way comprehensive reform can be enacted is if Republicans join with Democrats to solve this problem once and for all. 

According to Frank Sharry, Executive Director of America’s Voice, “The President’s speech was terrific.  He has engaged the country in a long overdue debate, and made the choice clear: We either enact a comprehensive solution that is both practical and humane, or we end up with odious state-by-state laws such as the ‘show me your papers’ Arizona law.  Now it’s up to Republicans.  They can either retreat behind empty sound bites and tortured defenses of the radical Arizona law, or they can step up and support what many in the GOP used to support – a comprehensive bill that ends illegal immigration.”

Given the hostile reaction by leading Republicans to the President’s speech, a bipartisan breakthrough in the coming weeks on comprehensive reform seems unlikely.  This is unfortunate, for experts and constituencies from across the political spectrum have rightly concluded that such an approach is the only way to truly solve the problem of illegal immigration.  From big city mayors, like Michael Bloomberg of New York City and Michael Nutter of Philadelphia, to major city police chiefs, like Chief Chris Burbank of Salt Lake City, UT and Chief Jack Harris of Phoenix, AZ;  from conservative evangelical leaders, like Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Convention and Leith Anderson of the National Association of Evangelicals, to civil rights leaders like Rev. Al Sharpton and Janet Murguia of NCLR, the support for a sensible immigration solution crosses traditional divisions and constituencies and was on full display at today’s event.

 Added Sharry, “Despite Republican obstructionism on comprehensive reform, the Administration and Congress can take a number of steps in the coming weeks that will move the nation in the right direction.  First, the Department of Justice should sue the state of Arizona to stop this un-American and unconstitutional law.  Second, the Department of Homeland Security should re-focus its enforcement activities on the ‘worst of the worst’ and leave college kids, ordinary workers, and close knit families alone.  Third, Congress should pass targeted measures such as the DREAM Act and AgJOBS, measures that enjoy bipartisan support and would serve as stepping stones toward broader reform.  These three steps would build on the President’s speech and turn his call to action into concrete initial steps.”

America's Voice -- Harnessing the power of American voices and American values to win common sense immigration reform.