Arizona's "Illegal" Immigration Law

by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700

Copyright April 25, 2010
All Rights Reserved.                                

                Signing the nation’s toughest illegal immigration bill into law, Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer gave local and state police the authority to arrest and deport suspected illegal aliens.  Brewer insists that Arizona had to act in it own defense after rancher Rob Krentz was murdered by an illegal alien that fled to Mexico.  “We in Arizona have been more than patient waiting for Washington to act,” said Brewer, justifying the state’s action that usurps the federal government’s Immigration and Naturalization Service.  Brewer knows that murder—or other crimes for that matter—is illegal, with adequate law enforcement and court remedies.  “But decades of inaction and misguided policy have created a dangerous and unacceptable situation,” alluding to Krentz’s March 29 murder as the straw that broke the camel’s back.  Brewer argues that garden-variety murder justifies the state’s extreme measures.

            Arizona’s new law goes beyond concerns about racial profiling or herding up brown-skinned residents without probable cause other than their skin color.  Calling the bill “misguided,” President Barack Obama was among the first national politicians to question the new law’s ethics or legality.  When the bill goes into effect in 90 days, Arizona state and local law enforcement will have the right to detain and eventually deport residents without proper documentation.  Border states, California, Texas and Arizona, derive a substantial part of their low-wage labor force from undocumented workers from south of the border.  Arizona’s legislature was so fed up—no pun intended—with its illegal immigration problem that it wrote its own immigration law.  No matter how frustrating, no state has the right to usurp the federal government immigration policies.

            Locked in a heated reelection battle, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) backed the state law, despite co-sponsoring the 2007 liberal immigration reform bill with the late Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.), giving the nation’s roughly 12 million illegal aliens a path to citizenship.   “I think it is a very important step forward,” said McCain, joining his GOP opponent J.D. Hayworth endorsing the legislation.  “I can fully understand why the legislature would want to act,” said McCain, stopping short of an outright endorsement.  McCain’s equivocation stems from his real belief in more humane immigration reform and his tough battle with his conservative GOP rival.  Sponsored by Arizona Rep. Russell Pearce of Mesa, the bill gives local and state law enforcement the right “when practicable” to detain and deport individuals suspected of not possessing proper state identification or paperwork.

            Arizona has a right to police its streets like any state but can’t usurp federal immigration laws.  If federal border police wish to change policies with respect to the criteria used for detaining or deporting suspected illegal aliens then that’s their mandate.  State legislators, no matter how angry, can’t enact laws that violate rights under the U.S. Constitution, including rights pertaining to citizenship.  “The law sends a clear message that Arizona is unfriendly to undocumented aliens,” said Temple University law professor Peter Spiro, author of “Beyond Citizenship:  American Identity After Globalization.”  No state, whether bordering Canada or Mexico, can arbitrarily pass laws more or less friendly to illegal aliens than any other state.  Only the federal government can set the conditions for detaining and deporting individuals suspected of entering the country illegally.

            President Obama reacted harshly to Arizona’s new bill.  “That includes, for example, the recent efforts in Arizona, which threaten to undermine basic notions of fairness that we cherish as Americans, as well as the trust between police and their communities that is so critical to keeping use safe,” said Barack, urging Arizona law enforcement to show restraint.  Saying Obama and other critics were “against law enforcement, our citizens and the rule of law,” the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Russell Pearce  made the case for the American Civil Liberties Union or other civil rights groups.  No state can usurp federal government and make up its own laws.  State and local law enforcement must follow strict criminal conduct codes, not make up its own rules for illegal aliens.  No federal judge can accept a state trespassing on the federal government’s rights and authority.

            When Arizona’s new law gets its day in federal court, it will be tossed out for usurping the government’s rights and jurisdiction to deal with immigration issues.  Whether or not a state believes the federal government abrogated its responsibility is beside the point.  Statewide retaliation against the federal government won’t be tolerated in U.S. District Court.  “Illegal is Illegal,” said Pearce.  “We’ll have less crime.  We’ll have lower taxes.  We’ll have safer neighborhoods.  We’ll have shorter lines in the emergency room.  We’ll have smaller classrooms,” showing the kind of xenophobia that federal laws are designed to protect.  No state, either by initiative or legislative acts, can usurp the federal government’s uniform Constitutional and civil rights’ protections.  Arizona has a right to write its own state laws as long as they don’t run afoul with the federal government.

John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He's editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.