An Immigration law for Texas

In continuation of my first immigration posting, here is a way we can take the best parts of Arizona's new law and make it work for us. We may not get all the way to immigration reform, but we can at least get on the right track.

There has been a lot in the news over the past few weeks about Arizona’s new immigration law. The new law allows law enforcement to stop and inquire about the legal status of anyone at anytime. Personally, I am not a fan of the new law. I think it goes a little too far and has the potential to allow the police to stop and question anyone they please. I am usually not a fan of the slippery slope argument, but in this case it makes sense. What I do think is that we should stay out of it. States like California have no business saying what other states can or cannot do within their borders. According to recent polls conducted by Gallup, more Americans favor the law than oppose it anyway.

With a few tweaks, a similar law can be implemented here in Texas that could help curb our immigration problems. I don’t think that law enforcement should have the right to stop anyone at anytime for any reason and inquire about the legal status. However, we have to stop tip toeing around the issue. Since when did it become a crime to ask if someone is committing a crime? We have to remember that illegal aliens are, by definition, breaking the law. Law enforcement should have the right to find out if a person, anyone for that matter, is breaking the laws of our state and nation.

I propose we give our states law enforcement agencies the power and the mandate to inquire about the legal status of anyone arrested in the commission of a crime. If a person is arrested for any reason, their legal status should be obtained and appropriate action taken. If said person is found to be here illegally, and if found guilty of the crime he or she was arrested for, he or she will be subject to deportation. There is no reason we should allow illegal alien CRIMINALS to live and work in our state. We have enough problems as is. If the person being arrested is found not guilty, they will be fined for being here illegally and released. By making this question a mandate for everyone who is arrested, you can eliminate the racial profiling argument. It is no more profiling than asking about sex or age when arrested.