Colorado gubernatorial candidate Scott McInnis (R) backs AZ immigration law. (health care, visas)

[downtownnola]

This really makes me sick...

Republican gubernatorial candidate Scott McInnis said today he backs Arizona’s tough immigration enforcement law, which allows police officers to stop people on the street — if they have reasonable suspicion — to prove they’re in the country legally.

“I’d do something very similar” if elected governor, McInnis said on Peter Boyles’s radio show on KHOW.

Colorado Republican Scott McInnis supports Arizona immigration law | The Spot

I hope this costs him the election.

[jim9251]

Good for him! He just got my vote.

[TungstenIron]

AZ waited for immigration reform proposals from the Feds for years, and got nothing. Ohio is very close to doing the same. The longer our federal government dithers, the more states will simply take action on their own.

[jazzlover]

Scott McInnis is absolutely correct in supporting the Arizona law. Illegal immigration is out of control in the United States, and the federal government has been totally irresponsible in what is a basic federal duty to protect the borders of the United States. Arizona and other border states have been bearing the brunt of that failure and they have had enough (and--make no mistake--the negative impact of illegal immigration on Colorado has been significant). I don't say the Arizona law is perfect, but its passage sends a clear message to the federal government that it needs to get off of its ass and enforce the immigration laws of this nation. Though it will not happen in this legislative session, I would hope Colorado would follow suit with similar legislation next session, if the feds continue to dodge their responsibilities.

I'm not in any way anti-Hispanic, and--in fact--I have great respect for the Hispanic heritage of Colorado. This is not about ethnicity or nationality. People who enter this country illegally are breaking a very basic law of the land and they need to be held accountable and deported, whatever their ethnicity or nationality. Period. Embedded within those illegal immigrants is a disturbingly high percentage of criminals and thugs that would not be in this country if our immigration laws were enforced. Those who support allowing our porous borders to stay that way share culpability for the crimes those people commit against American citizens.

By the way, I know a number of US-born or legally-immigrated Hispanics who wholeheartedly support the Arizona law because they are sick of numerous illegal immigrants, many of Hispanic ethnicity, that are tarnishing the reputation of all Hispanics by their illegal acts and criminal activity.

Finally, there are certain to be court challenges of the Arizona law. I would note that Scott McInnis is an attorney and I can say (because I know him personally and how he operates) that he has probably studied the wording of the Arizona bill very diligently to see if, in his view, the law passes Constitutional muster. Also, knowing Scott personally, I would say that he is the last person in the world that I would consider bigoted in any way against the Hispanic community. I would say he probably understands and respects the Hispanic heritage of Colorado better than most Coloradans.

To be clear on my stance on the illegal immigration issue:

1. All illegal immigrants in the United States should be deported. No exceptions.

2. Employers found guilty of knowingly employing illegal immigrants should be subject to severe fines (say $10,000-$100,000 per day for each incident) and/or significant jail time.

That would remove both the illegal aliens from this country and the incentive for them to come here. Then law enforcement could concentrate on rounding up and prosecuting the few illegal aliens left in this country whose sole reason for being here is to engage in pure criminal activity like the drug trade.

[CAVA1990]

The Republicans are doomed. They've written off the latino vote the way the Democrats did the Southern white vote following the Civil Rights Act. Unfortunately for them though the latino demographic is growing much faster than that of the middle aged white male. The Republicans will be facing the same prospects as the Israelis relative to the fast growing Palestinian population. So go ahead and support it and watch Colorado turn politically into another California.

[TungstenIron]

Originally Posted by CAVA1990

The Republicans are doomed. They've written off the latino vote the way the Democrats did the Southern white vote following the Civil Rights Act. Unfortunately for them though the latino demographic is growing much faster than that of the middle aged white male. The Republicans will be facing the same prospects as the Israelis relative to the fast growing Palestinian population. So go ahead and support it and watch Colorado turn politically into another California.

Funny, because nearly all of the Hispanic U.S. citizens I know are fully in favor of what AZ has done. This isn't about party affiliation either, but more about maintaining our country's sovereignty.

[DgoNative]

I think you guys aren't fully comprehending the breadth of this law being enacted in Arizona. This law will allow the police to stop any person that looks like they are of hispanic descent, question them, and detain them if they can't provide anything to prove their citizenship; racial profiling at its worst.

Jazzlover, I'd like to hear how your hispanic friends react when they are interrogated and humiliated on the streets of Anytown, AZ by being forced to prove they're American citizens just because their skin is a shade darker than ivory.

If Arizona is so concerned about illegals crossing the border, perhaps they should construct a Great Wall of the Sonoran. It'd be far cheaper in the end, considering all the lawsuits against the state of Arizona sure to come due to extreme racial profiling.

It really will be interesting (and shameful) to see what a sh*tshow this whole thing will turn into.

[jim9251]

Can we start taking bets to see how long it takes before this thread is locked?

[jazzlover]

Originally Posted by CAVA1990

The Republicans are doomed. They've written off the latino vote the way the Democrats did the Southern white vote following the Civil Rights Act. Unfortunately for them though the latino demographic is growing much faster than that of the middle aged white male. The Republicans will be facing the same prospects as the Israelis relative to the fast growing Palestinian population. So go ahead and support it and watch Colorado turn politically into another California.

I hate to tell you, but a whole lot of US-born Hispanics and legal Hispanic immigrants are more vehemently anti-illegal immigration than Anglos, including a large number of the Hispanics I know in southern Colorado and northern New Mexico. Also, the anti-illegal immigration movement, at least here in the western United States (where the residents are having to deal first-hand with the negative impacts), is not just some "conservative" movement. I know a lot of otherwise liberal Democrats who are fed up with illegal immigration, as well. In fact, the groups who generally pander to the "amnesty for illegal immigrants" movement are a) liberal political hacks who want illegal immigrants legalized to hopefully bolster their voter base, and b) conservative but less than ethical employers who want cheap, immigrant labor. It is that unholy alliance of slimebags, by the way, that has helped turn California into the broke, nearly ungovernable cesspool that it is.

As an aside, read my "status" saying on my header. It is a northern New Mexico Spanish saying that I adopted from one of my dear Hispanic (a "Nuevo Mejicano") friends in northern New Mexico. If you've lived in this area long enough, you can probably translate it. I make note of it since that fine Hispanic friend of mine is quite proud of his Hispanic heritage AND is vehemently anti-illegal immigration.

[wanneroo]

Originally Posted by DgoNative

I think you guys you guys aren't fully comprehending the breadth of this law being enacted in Arizona. This law will allow the police to stop any person that looks like they are of hispanic descent, question them, and detain them if they can't provide anything to prove their citizenship; racial profiling at its worst.

It isn't too hard, they ride around in vehicles with Mexican licence plates.

It's a huge problem in Colorado and having quite a bit of personal experience with this in Eagle County, something has to be done.

When I lived in Eagle County they had to construct a nice big jail to hold all of the local prisoners, 90% of which averaged to be illegal residents.

There is no question that many of the illegals are here to earn a buck, stay out of trouble and go home. However having lived in several apartment complexes along side illegals the amount of crime and violence is quite staggering. The Avon Police had to constantly patrol the one complex I lived in and it was a huge drain on resources. Can't tell you over the years in the different places I lived the # of times I had to call 911 due to all sorts of domestic and drunken brawls.

They also pay no taxes, no SS, no medicare, yet have their kids in Eagle County schools refusing to speak English, get health care when they want it and kept the police busy. We also have no idea who these people are or where they come from. They ride around in Mexican licence plated cars and you can be sure they aren't insured or even licenced to drive for all we know.

My old employer in Vail, we needed a lot of extra people for the winter so we hired overseas to fill our ranks. However all those people had proper visas, fingerprinted and checked backgrounds and while here paid taxes like everyone else.

I have no problem with an employer saying we need seasonal employees and can't find them locally so we need to hire outside the USA. But there needs to be some kind of visa program to support that need.

Letting illegals come into your state, take jobs, get bank accounts, get mortgages, get health care and free schooling for your kids, makes a mockery of people like my brother in law who spend 6 years of BOHICA examinations by the US government to become a US citizen.