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One point about Judge Susan Bolton's ruling Wednesday that isn't getting much attention is how she interpreted the new Arizona law before finding that it ran afoul of federal immigration law. It may be a key issue as the case proceeds on appeal.
The most controversial provision in the state law says that "For any lawful stop, detention or arrest," where reasonable suspicion exists that a person is here illegally, an attempt must be made to determine the person's immigration status. The very next sentence says, "Any person who is arrested shall have the person's immigration status determined before the person is released."
What, exactly, does that last sentence mean? Does it mean literally what it says -- that the police must check the immigration status of every single person arrested in Arizona? Or, as lawyers for the state argued, does it apply only to the first part of that section, to those occassions when there's a reasonable suspicion that the person arrested is here illegally?
Judge Bolton concluded it means everybody arrested. It's for that reason that she said the law would sweep so broadly, requiring even U.S. citizens to wait for their immigration status to be confirmed and overwhelming the federal system with police requests for verification of immigration status, shifting the allocation of resources away from federal priorities.
She reached her conclusion, she wrote, by looking at how the state law was originally drafted. In its earlier version, it began, "For any lawful contact," instead of "For any lawful stop, detention or arrest." The second sentence read the same in the earlier version. Therefore, the judge said, because the original version referred simply to "lawful contact," the second sentence, covering "any person who is arrested," was meant to stand alone, not to be limited by the earlier wording.
"The number of requests that will emanate from Arizona as a result of determining the status of every arrestee is likely to impermissibly burden federal resources and redirect federal agencies away from the practices they have established," Judge Bolton said in Thursday's ruling.
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last night it was watching CNN and FOX, i flip between each channel on commercials. i hate to say this but here we go, this whole illegal immigration problem is being put upon the back of the Mexicans or those who come from central America. according the crime statics put out be the FBI(a non liberal agency) tells us that crime along the boarder and boarder city's and towns has been a a steady decline for 4 years. this year it is at it lowest in years, in fact crime in the US is down over the last 2 years.
Has any body gave thought to the illegal Chinese immigrant, or the Polish, Russian. of the 12 million illegals how many are Mexican, Chinese, Russian Polish. you know we don't have 12 million illegal Mexican immigrants. we have illegals that are from every where. but fox news last night made it known that every illegal here is from Mexico. 12 million, they were saying that we can deport the 12 million illegals back to Mexico over a 3 year period.
see where i'm going, lets see this for what this is, Mexican are being singled out because of race. think about it, the Russian mob is dangerous but all we here in the media(all the media) is the Mexicans. there causing all these problems so we need to get rid of them.
the crime stacts are a sign to me and should be to everybody that if the crime in AR, TX, CA is going down and more illegals are being caught at the boarder and once they are here more are being deported them why in god is AR doing this, its about race.
i don't here them complain about the white illegals, like i said before, Russian, Chinese, polish, Arabic country's. you don't here about it.
to me AR is acting like a bunch of bigoted. i could be wrong but last nights news programs to showed me this is not about crime, Illegals, boarder security, ITS ALL ABOUT RACE!!!!!!
Jeff, I hate to be picky but AR is the abbreviation used for Arkansas. We use AZ for Arizona. I believe you meant AZ.
my bad Adler. but do you see where i'm coming from?
Jeff-1541632
What Governor Brewer Tea Party/ Neo- Nazi citizens really fear is too many brown faces and that they will be in the minority. A mural displayed on an elementary school building in Prescott, Arizona quite rightly depicted chi Heff of various races. Passing motorists felt free to hurl slurs of “ni***er” and “sp*c” at the very images of brown skinned children.
Blair said he has received a number of calls from long-time Prescott residents who ask, "Who authorized that graffiti on the wall?" He added: "What these people don't like is somebody forcing diversity down their throats."
http://www.tucsonsentinel.com/local/report/060510_prescott_fired
Arizona’s history of official, sanctioned racism. In 1861 white settlers organized to secede from the larger New Mexico territory and were welcomed into the slave holding Confederacy. The goal of its inclusion as a Confederate territory was to cut off Union access to California and to expand slavery ever further to the west. It should not have come as a surprise that Arizona was one of the last states to celebrate the Martin Luther King Day holiday. It is now in the forefront of promoting white nationalist politics with its anti-immigrant legislation
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Mexico_Territory_in_the_American_Civil_War
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You are welcome. Thank you and others for pointing out the good things that go on in "my favorite kinda town", Chicago with facts.
Jeff a few days ago you said...
Thanks beverly for the update from chicago. I'm in denver working untill the construction market recovers in the chicago area. that is great news for the ford plant. its a staple in chicago, and the rail traffic in englewood needed to be addressed. for a long time. as you said jobs saved, and i heard there is a development being planned for the old pullman plant site. new housing and stores. i hope that the general assemble in springfield pass funding for the capital spending bill for new bridges and other infrastructure. this is what needs to happen to get things back on track.
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If may grandson was here I wouldn't be able to watch it. He said one day grandma turn that off; I don't like it. I probed his little mind by asking why? He said they say bad things about Obaaaaama.I channel surf too. I'm listening to Glenn Beck illustrate on his blackboard jungle his rant about Progressives. No propensity about the Dark Dudes out there; at least not yet. Did you see it the day he said that? It was hilarious.
Now if a 7 yr old can see that; why can't adults?
I agree illegals coming across the boarder is down crime is down and no other Americans are willing to work for the wages they get race is a part of this. America has a history of being out rage over immigration. Irish, Italian, Vietnamese, Chines, eastern Europeans, Russians, Haitians, Cubans, Japanese are just some of the groups some Americans has taken issues with their arrival. This is after the 1900 when we got immigration laws. Before then Scott Irish, Germans, Polish, Scandinavians and I know I missed some others.
Beverly,
Why do you have to call the citizens of AZ neo-nazi's? As a matter of fact why do you even use that word? This is why Republicans jump at you Liberals. People like you keep sh!t going. It don't even stink until your ilk put the stick in and stir it up.
You need to worry about Chicago and the corrupt azz politicians in that city.
Jeff
As you seem to want to make this about race....lets be honest about something.....
Yes there are illegal immigrants from all over the world living here....there is no doubting that. But where do the overwhelming majority of them come from? Central America and I would be willing to wager my paycheck to say that the majority of those illegals come from Mexico.
Lets call a spade a spade here.
This is exactly what political corectness has gotten us. People are so afraid to be honest about this issue that no one wants to even state the obvious: THE MAJORITY OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS ARE MEXICAN.
Thats not racism thats looking at the situation and being honest....
Let the "Larry is a racist" bashing begin in 3....2....1.... and go....
Larry, I will be the first to say you are NOT a racist. What you are though is another American who fails to see the injustice of setting policy and writing laws that are directed at one race over another.
What the majority of people who disagree with the AZ law, people like me, are upset with is the fact that this law is directed at Hispanics. There are people who agree with this law, that know full well and support full the concept, that illegal is illegal. Well I agree with that principle. So why is AZ writing a law that directly targets their largest minority population.
Try this on for size. A law enforcement officer (call it police or cop, whatever) stops a motorist for a traffic violation. The motorist supplies the officer with identification, which the officer suspects may be fraudulent. The officer then escalates the investigation into a possible illegal immigration investigation. Meanwhile the motorist is detained and possibly incarcerated while their status is verified. After some time, say its 3-5 hours, the motorists is found to be a legal American resident, and they are released. Now, is that an acceptable scenario for you? Notice I did not state what the ethnicity of the motorist is.
Personally, as an American citizen I do not think that I should have my freedom and liberty restricted, and be subject to being placed in jail while the system determines if I am legally a citizen or not. This doesn't have anything to do with being for or against illegal immigration, it has to do with our rights and freedoms as Americans. Do I have a solution to illegal immigration, No. But, I do know that what is being proposed in AZ smacks of Racial Profiling. Why do I say this, because the majority of people who will be investigated as suspected illegal immigrants will be those who are minorities. And, while you may feel that suspecting innocent Americans to this type of scrutiny is the price we have to pay in this day and time, I do not. And there are a lot of us in this country who feel the same way.
I agree that something needs to be done to reduce the number of illegal immigrants crossing our borders and shorelines. But this is not a fair and American remedy. This AZ law is directed at curtailing Hispanics and unfairly singles them out by inference.
You and yours can hide behind the mantra of "Illegal is illegal" but three word phrases rarely speak to the complexities of our modern society. In short, there are illegal immigrants from many countries and of many races. Don't pin this on the backs of Hispanics alone. You may not like the backlash that comes as a result.
Wouldn't it be funny if people swarmed to AZ, citizens of course, and do some little thing to get arrested and burden the system. Since people don't listen to normal talk sometimes it is necessary to hit them over the head with the facts. Burden the system and then report what is going on. Too much time wasted checking the status of American citizens that the few illegals that are caught won't make it worth the hassle.
For those who are letter of the law types this is a brilliant decision. The law says what it says and if that is true than the judge was correct in her ruling. That will violate the US Constitution.
US citizens having to carry citizenship proof smacks of a totalitarian state. I know that's what the Fascist wannabe right wing extremists want but this ruling will make their wish harder to attain.
Adler-273784
Since Rachel did this interview ...
Given the authors of this law, no one should be surprised about its intended targets. The law was drafted by a lawyer for the legal arm of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), whose founder has warned of a “Latin onslaught” and complained about Latinos’ alleged low “educability.”FAIR has accepted $1.2 million from the Pioneer Fund, a racist foundation that was set up by Nazi sympathizers to fund studies of eugenics, the science of selective breeding to produce a “better” race. The legislation was sponsored by state Senator Russell Pearce, who once e-mailed an anti-Semitic article from the neo-Nazi National Alliance website to supporters.
http://firedoglake.com/2010/04/30/early-morning-swim-rachel-maddow-interviews-fair-president-author-of-racist-arizona-immigration-law/
And Sara Robinson of Alter net wrote this,
Does the Right Want a Civil War?
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/peek/140623
I'm convined that the idiot Gun toting Tea Baggers, Oath keepers, spitting on Congressman, and homo/xenophobic slurs, other states following AZ , states wanting to secede, and some how wanted to celebrate The Confederacy; we soon will has chaos. Are we going to be the United States with the Constitution as the supreme law of the land? Something's Up.
Wow, Ed Schultz called Michelle Malkin a slant head. To me she is an self -loathing, acerbic, platypus mouth who spews right wing poison.
Given that Michelle Malkin is Asian, I'd say Eddy boy was treading a very thin line. I'm pretty sure that Clint Eastwood called the Hmong "slants" (not to mention the Koreans) in the movie "Gran Torino". Maybe pure and progressive Eddy saw the movie and got the wrong impression.
ABIFOS
Gosh, the Pioneer Fund would have been perfect for Margaret Sanger.
That is a reasonable interpretation. You look at legislative intent where there is ambiguity, and there surely was ambiguity here. Legislative history is evidence of legislative intent. The judge applied proper legal analysis. It will be interesting to see what an appellate court will do with that.
Thanks for the 'inside info' Anna Molly! ;0)
Sounds like this judge punted on a legal technicality that is easily fixed by the AZ legislature passing a technical corrections bill. As they say in tennis "Advantage AZ'.
I was listening to Rush yesterday (Yes I know to you libs he is the devil incarnate)....but he made a very good point yesterday
Basically this judge ruled that since the Federal gov't isnt enforcing its own laws that means that Arizona is not allowed to enforce it either.
Larry, Minot, N.D.
I was listening to Rush yesterday (Yes I know to you libs he is the devil incarnate)....but he made a very good point yesterday
Basically this judge ruled that since the Federal gov't isnt enforcing its own laws that means that Arizona is not allowed to enforce it either.
larry i have tried to stomach listion to rush and all he is, is entertainment. he says things his listioners want to here, he just like me are not lawyers. all the DOJ did was to make AZ know that they can't make up there own Immrgration laws.
i'm getting sick of Rush, Governer brewer and FOX saying that the president is not securing the border, according to the FBi he is and in the last year of bush he was as well. this is all made up for November. is Governer Brewer running for re-election. we know John McCain is.
Where do you think this kind of crap is coming from, for exhibit a?
BECK: Let's say my company, Mercury, where we have Internet records for all of our business. We also have all of our emails and everything else. Let's just say that the government decides that I'm a threat to the United States and that there's some sort of, you know, well, Glenn Beck has been communicating with a gentleman in Canada. And this gentleman in Canada has ties to a terrorist organization. Remember, they get to define a terrorist organization. Here, let me use a better one. An NRA member uses their gun to shoot something. The United States government decides that they're going to make the NRA a terrorist organization. Don't think they wouldn't do it. They make the NRA a terrorist organization. Now, anybody who has contributed to the NRA could be, in theory, scooped up and held indefinitely without a trial or a warrant. We already have that one going. They're already arguing for these things right now. It's how they define terrorist. So let's say I'm -- because I write a letter to Wayne LaPierre, he writes me back. They say, you know what, Glenn Beck has been in communication with this terrorist organization. With this four-word change, they can now not only go into the NRA without a warrant, no judge involved, on the president's word, they can go and take all internet records and seize them. Plus, this new change in the law would force the NRA or me, my company, to not be able -- we would be bound by law -- we would not be able to disclose the government has done that.
Oh my...
I sure hope all First Readers were watching "Hardball" today, with host Chris Matthews accusing Howard Dean and Salon's Joan Walsh of mischaracterizing Fox News' coverage of the Shirley Sherrod affair.
Matthews pointed out that Governor Dean didn't know what he was talking about...Walsh finally backed down, but Dean stubbornly insisted on being wrong.
Personally...I loved the exchange.
And, as First Read regulars know...I'm not a big fan of Chris Matthews.
Kudos, Chris...
I was screaming at the TV. He shredded Howard Dean. I would have thought he was a liberal. Maybe he just doesn't like Howard Dean.
I knew I gave Chris Matthews too much credit, he always manages to do the back and forth and just can't seem to understand what "Hard Ball" really means. Just when I thought he was on to something
Joan Walsh is one of the very Best guests on his or any other show and is always well researched and well read. How dare he
Howard Dean, Chris will never match the well learned and well intellectual skills of Dr. Dean
I won't be watching tonight,
Another big dissapointment from Matthews
I won't be giving him any koodos ever again.
I think Chris is just loves to hear the sound of his voice. It is no longer "Hardball". It has devolved into "Cheeseball"
Will the real Chris Matthews stand up? I was watching my top cuckoo, Glenn Beck, on FOX NOISE. At least, I'm entertained and can laugh at this goof until he starts bad mouthing Black people. I cannot do the same for Chris. I wish I knew what agenda Chris is pushing!!
SO when Mathews finally states the truth ... that Fox did not report this incident until AFTER Sherrod was fired, he is now hositng Cheeseball... Are you kidding me! You obviously don't watch BEck or you wouldl know that he had a week long series highlightng the major accomplishments that black leaders have had on this nation. You have not seen that on liberal MSNBC. Get your facts straight... You have no credibility.
I think it is hilarious that those on the left (June and Beverly, among others) say that they want an unbiased media that investigates and reports truth, but anytime a reporter dares criticize a liberal politician or leader OR report facts that do not fit their narrative, they vow to never watch that reporter again. Yet, Beverly posts some crap editorial opinion letter from some liberal blog pushing some idea that the right is intentionally trying to start a civil war (give me a break) as though it possesses one iota of truth when in fact, it is just a bunch of lunatic rubbish. Priceless!!
Now, commence with the oh-so-predictable Fox News, Beck, Limbaugh, Hannity tirade (when I don't listen to any of the commentators and only watch Fox News if I've been watching MSNBC).
I have been having a "hard" time watching Hardball because Chris Matthews will not shut up. He asks a question (which is more like a dissertation) and then when the guest tries to respond, Matthews rudely interrupts the guest and continues with his dissertation. I find myself screeching at him saying STFU and let the guest answer.
As for the coverage on Fox News, I'm confused. How can you say Fox News only started coverage of the Sherrod story after her firing when Bill O'Reilly was calling for her firing based on the edited video. I saw a time line from Media Facts (I believe) which showed the progression of the coverage on Fox News. They were spewing about it after Blowbart released it. How could O'Reilly be calling for her to resign if they - supposedly - only started coverage after her termination.
Chris Matthews, the slobbering, spitting political pendulum. For the moment, I think I like him if only for giving Howard Dean a hard time.
Way to go, Chris! Love ya! At least today.
On another note, I think it's funny when someone responds to a post and uses the same word in theirs, but manages to change the perfectly good spelling of the word even when it's right in front of them.
Kudos to June.
"It's time for the unselfishness to end..."
Ed Shultz, "The Ed Show", 7/29/2010
Really, Ed...?
MB, I saw thet one too. That's why I LOVE watching PMSNBC's feisty redhead, Ed Schultz's, Mr. Ed Show. He reminds me of a lefty liberal Archie Bunker.
Read on another site today. Interesting.
****************************************************
How Long Do We Have?
About the time our original thirteen states adopted their new constitution in 1787, Alexander Tyler,
A Scottish history professor at the University of Edinburgh ,
Had this to say about the fall of the Athenian Republic some 2,000 years earlier:
'A democracy is always temporary in nature;
It simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government.'
'A democracy will continue to exist up until the time
That voters discover they can vote themselves
Generous gifts from the public treasury.'
' From that moment on, the majority always vote for the candidates
Who promise the most benefits from the public treasury,
With the result that every democracy will finally collapse
Due to loose fiscal policy,
Which is always followed by a dictatorship.'
'The
Average age of the world's greatest civilizations
From the beginning of history, has been about 200 years'
'During those 200 years, those nations always progressed
Through the following
Sequence:
1.
From bondage to spiritual faith;
2.
From spiritual faith to great courage;
3.
From courage to liberty;
4.
From liberty to abundance;
5.
From abundance to complacency;
6.
From complacency to apathy;
7.
From apathy to dependence;
8.
From dependence back into bondage'
Tyler never wrote any such thing. You got this from someone that sent it on the Nets and you have put it in here. You are a liar.
Jeff, I am a resident of Arizona who supports this bill, and everybody I have talked to who is also in Arizona and supports this bill wants illegal immigrants gone no matter their race, nationality, or color. This is about enforcing our laws and discouraging illegal immigration in the hopes that more people will attempt to immigrate legally. The majority of people I know in Arizona want to go both after the business hiring illegal immigrants and also the illegal immigrants themselves as a two pronged system to stem the flow of illegal immigration.
If you only attempt to solve one of the problems without attempting to fix the other you will not be solving the problem (personally I would like both types of enforcement strengthened and legal immigration laws loosened but no amnesty). If you attempt to only deport those who are here illegally and not attempt to stop businesses then you have the problem of the impetus for illegal immigration remaining and more illegal immigrants coming. If you only go after businesses then you have illegal immigrants who have no jobs and have no choice to commit crimes, or use taxpayer funded programs in order to sustain themselves if they remain in the US. This law mimics the federal law that the feds are unwilling to enforce. In fact the feds are reducing their attempts to stem illegal immigration through their new "silent" shutdowns of companies that employ illegal immigrant were they send a federal agent to look at and shutdown a company they know is employing illegals instead of doing raids which attempts to stop BOTH the company and deport the illegals they KNOW are working for the company.
get your head oya
Jeff,
I agree with you. Illegal Aliens come in all sizes, shapes, race, gender, religions you name it. To single out one group for what is wrong in this country is truly repugnant and should not be tolerated.
Where are the left wing nuts that always complain about the tea party rallies being racist and anti-American. In Arizona today we had hundreds bused in from California and New Mexico at the expense of labor unions, they were bused in to cause civil disorder and to be purposely arrested. If this is not a political ploy by the left I don't know what is. There has never been an arrest or an civil disorder at any tea party rally. So I guess that proves the lefties are the real terrorist that want to tear this country down. If you don't like a law you go to court and get it changed and not take it to the street in a disorderly fashion. Maybe use left nuts should practice what you preach. BTW, I wonder if the union is paying these so called concern people minimum wage like they have paid other protesters.
I have relative in Arizona and illegals are a problem but if they all left then there would be another problem, Labor.
What I don't like about this bill is that it singles out one group and that is just wrong. Since I once lived in Cali and been to Florida tell me how can anyone tell an legal from an legal? We have millions of legal Hispanic/Latino all over this nation and they are to be the only one caring ID cards to prove that they are Citizen? That is just wrong.
I have read all of your post and it is sad to see that we are so divided. We all human and just because we have different color skin we are no different from one to another. My rule of thump is that I always treat people like how I wanted to be treated.
The people in AZ trying to past this new immigration law they should ask themselves how they would feel if someone harass them just because you look Mexican. I am a MUD so I guess I am safe (maybe??)
J LOL
A much admired American President once said " A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong, gives it a superficial appearance of being right" That President was Thomas Jefferson! This country has always " harassed" criminals regardless of their crime. If you happen to be a mexican criminal or illegal, the law applies equally to you as well , right? It's simply a matter of wrong and right. If I violate the law, I will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, right? Why should you illegals of any national origin, from any country get to openly break the law and expect protection from the very laws you have violated? Oh and by the way, criminals are not a race or ethnicity, they are criminals. Another beloved President said and I quote " Let me not be understood as saying that there are no bad laws, nor that grievances may not arise for the redress of which no legal provisions have been made. I mean no such thing. But I do mean to say that although bad laws, if they exist, should be repealed as soon as possible, still, while they continue in force , for the sake of example THEY SHOULD BE RELIGIOUSLY OBSERVED! Abraham Lincoln said that over one hundred and fifty years ago. I used to be so proud of our system of government and laws . No more , I hate the government and all the liars and swindlers who have sold their honor and their integrity to the illegal alien criminal caucus in the senate. The senate is a den of thieves whose only purpose is to enrich themselves, ignoring the will of the people. Well the American people know how to impose our will on the congress. Your all going to be looking for a job come November. Go to mexico . You don't represent me. And I'm a taxpayer and a voter, but first and foremost I'm a patriot. My allegiance is to my country not to the disgusting, corrupt, thieving, liars! A patriot must always be ready to defend his country AGAINST the government! Come on America it's time to defend our country from those who destroy it. I'm ready willing and able and I'm not scared of those tinhorn dictators.
I'm cornfused ! How can a US CITIZEN have ANY Immigration Status ?
I was born in Ft. Worth TX. My father was born in Rosebud TX, and my mother was also born in Ft. Worth TX. I have lived in Aridzona for the last 30 years. If an AZ cop asks me what my immigration staus is, I cannot answer anything truthful and factual except to say "I do not have any Immigration Status". Then they will arrest me ! Thank goodness Judge Bolton has read the 4th Ammendment to the US Constitution. Obviously Default Gov Brewer and the great legal scholar Pierce(?) that wrote the Republic of Arizona Immigration Law did not.