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August 30, 2010 A Tale of Two States by Ira Mehlman Arizona and New Mexico have a lot in common: They occupy a vast stretches of desert in the American southwest; they are almost identical in area; they both were admitted to the union 98 years ago, just 39 days apart and; they share a long border with Mexico, which puts them on the front lines of the illegal immigration crisis. But, when it comes to dealing with illegal immigration, they could not be more dissimilar. Arizona has led the way in efforts to discourage illegal aliens from remaining in the state, while New Mexico is perhaps the most welcoming state for illegal aliens. According to NPR, many illegal aliens are acting rationally and leaving Arizona for New Mexico. New Mexico, which issues driver's licenses to people presenting Mexican matricula consular cards, has experienced surge in new licenses without proof of legal U.S. residence. So far this year, about 11,000 new licenses have been issued to matricula card holders. Utah and Washington, the other two states that do not require proof of legal residence, have seen similar surges. The impact is being felt not just at the Motor Vehicle Department. New Mexico school districts have experienced "unexpected" influx of new students, many arriving from Arizona. According to new data released by FAIR, New Mexico taxpayers already spend about $415 million to educate the children of illegal aliens ($608 million on all services for illegal aliens) and that figure is likely to grow, even as the state faces a $230 million projected budget shortfall next year. New Mexicans' patience with policies that invite illegal immigration may be coming to an end. Both candidates in this year's gubernatorial race have vowed to end the practice of granting licenses to illegal aliens.
Without Federal Support, AZ Faces Costs for Immigrant Detention The Christian Science Monitor says that detaining illegal immigrants until they can be deported carries a high cost. "In Arizona, police could arrest them under the new state law, but keeping them in already crowded jails costs roughly $100 a day per person. For 5,000 people, imprisonment costs could add up to $182.5 million a year. That's a hefty charge for a state struggling with a budget deficit of at least $368 million," the paper notes. "Presumably Arizona could save money by handing illegal immigrants over to the federal government for deportation . . . Whether Washington will pay for more deportations is problematic." [FAIR Comment: The CSM analysis is based on the unrealistic assumption that the state would hold illegal aliens that the federal government would not accept for deportation in detention for a full year. If Arizona just held those 5,000 deportable aliens for a month, the cost would be $15 million a year.]
Legislator: Florida Needs an Arizona-Style Law "By most accounts, more than 800,000 aliens currently residing inFlorida initially entered the United States illegally. The undocumented and illegal status of these individuals creates a multitude of complex socio-economic and public safety challenges for the citizens of our state. This untenable scenario results in a shadowy subculture for the immigrants, where they are easily taken advantage of by various segments of our society. It is patently un-American and unfair to allow this unstable situation to continue," says Bill Snyder, a state legislator from Florida who wants to pass an Arizona-style immigration law. In a related story, Michigan voters strongly support an Arizona-style law there. "Two-thirds of Michigan voters support an Arizona-style immigration law for the Great Lakes State, while the "tea party" movement enjoys more support than opposition, a poll shows," according to the Livingston Daily.
First National Guard Troops Arrive at Border, 500 Expected by October "The Obama Administration's push to strengthen border security begins this week with the arrival of 30 Army National Guard soldiers at the Arizona - Mexico border," ABC News reported. "The deployment of the National Guardsmen has been criticized by the president's political opponents as sluggish."
Brewer Calls for State Dept. to Remove SB 1070 from Human Rights Report "Arizona GOP Gov. Jan Brewer is calling on Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to remove a reference to her state's immigration law from a report on human rights," Politico reports. "In a required report to the United Nations Human Rights Council, the State Department said the federal government's challenge to the Arizona law that requires police to check the immigration status of anyone they stop or detain was an example of how the United States is protecting human rights."
Democrat Senator Says Amnesty Bill Unlikely "Comprehensive immigration reform isn't going to happen this year, a Democratic senator said over the weekend. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) said he didn't expect a comprehensive bill to make its way through Congress, which returns in September for several weeks of work before breaking again for midterm elections," The Hill newspaper reported on its blog.
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