So - what do you think of the Arizona immigration bill?

I may be naive but I always hope that courts will decide the merit of cases (such as the constitutionality of a law) on the merits, rather than based on who the plaintiff/defendant are.

It is a good thing that something is going forward.

The proposed law had a couple of problems.

Hopefully, as it goes through the legal process the law will be improved & put into place.

The video that was made to train law enforcement did feature some issues.

They could've done without that video. The written law appears to be better as it is less clear in how it would play out.

I don't see this issue as being on the top of our list of priorities but it is something that needs to be dealt with long-term.

Edited: Still have not read the entire opinion, but did clarify the "enforcement of federal immigration law" issue. 1070 did have provisions requiring all local govt's and law enforcement to enforce federal law, thereby banning sanctuary cities.

I do appreciate that steps are being taken.

I think that many people that want to see the border secure would vote "yes" to ANY measure that goes in that direction. Any polling is surely skewed by that fact.

Although I wouldn't lose sleep knowing that Arizona law enforcement chooses to do its thing, the law would be better suited if it were shored up a bit from its original form.

The original form absolutely has profiling issues in how it plays out. They can put in the clause all that they would like that profiling is prohibited but you actually cannot eliminate it.

The fact that Arizona has some sherriffs that perform "sweeps" to wrangle illegals is a form of profiling. It is not just going about their business of enforcing the law & THEN looking into

If some of them do that, well that is fine... but they cannot claim that they are not profiling.

I do hope that we see the proper uniform enforcement of those that engage in "criminal" behavior. I am not exactly comfortable with the fact that they would be allowed to hassle individuals that may have been guilty of an infraction.

The fact that pretty much ANY driver can be pulled over for violating traffic laws at any moment makes that threshold very weak. I mean who doesn't drive 32 in a 25 MPH zone? Only Grandma as far as I can see but she can barely see over the steering wheel even with the use of the yellow pages.

Also, not so comfortable with the fact that others in that vehicle could also be questioned. They were guilty of no infraction.... Also, a Mexican American in that car could be hassled as well.... & he very well might not have ID on him as he was not driving.

Perhaps we could actually deport upon criminal behavior throughout the country thus cutting the numbers down?

Not only cutting the numbers down but also getting rid of the least desirable residents.

Criminal behavior is far less subjective than an infraction whose enforcement is ALWAYS subjective.

As far as securing the borders... I would also love to know what that would entail & the cost associated before making up my mind on that one.

The manpower alone might put a monumental cost on it.

Actually nothing about the possibility of granting amnesty to a percentage of illegals concerns me nor does the procedure involved.

I have a lot of faith in law enforcement so I have no doubt that they have the common sense to deal with the issue. They actually don't need specific guidelines.... well, at least in my state they do!

I am actually quite certain that some (many) states have far lesser quality civil servants. Yet another reason why my opinion on the issue is less valid than someone closer to the situation.

This one of the very few issues that are so local that states should take the lead in dealing with it. The Feds could/should be heavily involved but should dig in for solutions at local levels.

There is, however, no way in the world to prevent racial profiling. So that argument can go out the window.

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& zal... I don't believe you that profiling can be prevented. Very overt profiling can be but saying that profiling can be prevented is like saying that racism can be prevented. It is a human thing.

I am quite certain that some officers that are very in favor of border enforcement will in fact change the manner in which they enforce law if they suspect that an individual is illegal. It really isn't that hard to find a "valid" reason to pull someone over.

(Entirely different & off-topic slightly...but...There was also an issue in the fact that the video had stated that officers could actually target areas where day laborers would congregate. That would be a circumstance in which no law was broken. Congregating in the manner in which they do is not illegal... nor is getting into someone's vehicle.)

Do you really think that black individuals in this country are all lying about their experience with law enforcement from time to time?

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