Arizona Governor’s About Face on Immigration Enforcement
Arizona Governor Napolitano is making daily
news with her comments about entering a new cooperative relationship with the federal government’s Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to attack illegal alien smuggling. Part of the newly announced cooperation is to have four state Public Safety (DPS) officers be part of an undercover task force focused on catching smugglers. DHS/ICE already operates two such units in Arizona. Other issues being considered is co-locating DPS personnel at highway checkpoints, transporting apprehended illegal aliens, and permanently assigned liaison staff.
Putting this new focus by Napolitano in perspective, DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff noted in a letter to Napolitano last week that prior efforts to put DPS officers into an ICE-led unit had been rebuffed by state officials.
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