LatinaLista — With news today that the annual border governor’s conference has moved from Phoenix, Arizona to Santa Fe, New Mexico after Gov. Brewer, chair of the XXVIII Border Governors Conference, cancelled the conference due to several Mexican governors refusing to attend because of Arizona’s new immigration law, it would seem that Arizona’s new law has not only put Gov. Jan Brewer on the opposite side – figuratively speaking – from her Mexican contemporaries but now also with her American peer Gov. Richardson.
In a special “pre-release” preview from their upcoming July 30 issue, Americas Quarterly shares with Latina Lista readers an immigration face-off between Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson.
Mexican and U.S. states who are members of the binational Border Governors.
Hard Talk: Immigration
Jan Brewer vs. Bill Richardson
Gov. Jan Brewer
With the federal government unwilling to secure our border, we are left with little choice.Our neighbor to the south is in a massive battle with well-organized drug cartels. Because of Washington’s failure to secure our southern border, Arizona has become the superhighway for illegal drug and human smuggling activity. In December 2008, the U.S. Justice Department said that Mexican gangs are the “biggest organized crime threat to the United States.” In 2009, Phoenix had 316 kidnapping cases, turning the city into our nation’s kidnapping capital. Almost all of the persons kidnapped were undocumented immigrants or linked to the drug trade.
The same week that I signed the new law, a major drug ring was broken up and Mexican cartel operatives suspected of running 40,000 pounds of marijuana through southern Arizona were indicted.
While drug smuggling is the principal cause of our massive border violence problem, many of the same criminal organizations also smuggle people. Busts of drop houses, where undocumented immigrants are often held for ransom or otherwise severely abused, are not an uncommon occurrence in Arizona neighborhoods.
Today, Arizona has approximately 6,000 prison inmates who are foreign nationals, representing a cost to our state of roughly $150 million per year. Arizona taxpayers are paying for a vast majority of these incarceration expenses because the federal government refuses to pay what it owes. My predecessor as Arizona governor, current Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, sent numerous requests to the federal government to pay for these prisoners–only to be given the same answer that she and President Barack Obama are now giving Arizona: they will not pay the bill.
When I signed the legislation, I stated clearly I will not tolerate racial discrimination or racial profiling in Arizona. My administration worked for weeks with legislators to clarify and strengthen SB 1070’s civil rights protections. I issued an executive order to implement proper training and enforcement protocols for our police so that the intent of the bill’s language could not be misconstrued. Although it is already against the law, the new law undeniably prohibits law enforcement officers from considering race, color or national origin in implementing the new statute.
As committed as I am to protecting our state from crime associated with illegal immigration, I am equally committed to holding law enforcement accountable should this statute ever be misused to violate an individual’s rights.
There have been countless distortions, honest omissions, myths, and bad information about Arizona’s new law–many, undoubtedly, spread to create fear or mistrust.
So, here are the facts: first…
Finish reading Jan Brewer vs. Bill Richardson
Comment(4)
Facts
THE FACTS ARE THAT JAN BREWER DID THIS TO GET REELECTED, HERE ARE FACTS.
1, HOW MUCH MONEY $$$$$$$ IS ALLOCATED TO ENFORCE THIS LAW?? NONE.
2, HOW MANY NEW POLICEMEN / WOMEN SHES HIRED TO HOLD AND PROCESS THE HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS? NONE.
3, HOW MANY NEW IMMIGRATION JUDGES SHES HIRED TO PROCESS THE THOUSANDS OF DEPORTATION CASES?? NONE.
4, HOW MANY NEW JAILS SHES BUILT TO HOLD THE THOUSANDS OF UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS? NONE.
5, HOW MANY BUSES / PLANES SHES BROUGHT TO DEPORT THE HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF THOSE WHO ARE ORDERED BY THE IMMIGRATION JUDGES TO BE DEPORTED?? NONE.
CAN ANYONE ANSWER THESE FACTS? THE REPUBLICAN STATES ARE TRYING TO MAKE THIS THEIR PLATFORM, THEY WILL LOSE BIGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG TIME.
ALL ARE GODS CHILDREN. NO HUMAN IS ABOVE ANOTHER. ALL ARE CREATED BY ONE ALMIGHTY GOD WHO LOVES ALL HIS CHILDREN.
I AM NOT SAYING DON’T CLOSE THE BORDERS I AM SAYING STOP THE FOOLISH HATE AND IGNORANCE.
Truth
The Undocumented Immigrants pay the exact same amount of taxes like you and me when they buy Things, rent a house, fill up gas, drink a beer or wine, buy appliances, play the states lottery and mega millions . Below are the links to just a few sites that will show you exactly how much tax you or the Undocumented Immigrant pays , so you see they are NOT FREELOADERS, THEY PAY TAXES AND TOLLS Exactly the same as you, Now if you take out 10% from your states /city Budget what will your city/state look like financially ?
Stop your folly thinking , you are wise USE YOUR WISDOM to see the reality. They pay more taxes than you think, Including FEDERAL INCOME TAX using a ITN Number that is given to them by the IRS, Social Security Taxes and State taxes that are withheld form their paychecks automatically.
Taxes, paid by You & the Undocumented are the same in each state check your state : http://www.taxadmin.org/fta/rate/sales.html
GAS Taxes paid by you & the Undocumented are the same. Go to and check out your states tax; http://www.gaspricewatch.com/usgastaxes.asp
Cigarette Taxes paid by you & the Undocumented are the same, check this out in : http://www.taxadmin.org/fta/rate/cigarett.html
Clothing Sales Taxes, are the same paid by you & the Undocumented Immigrant; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sales_taxes_in_the_United_States
City Taxes, are the same paid by you or the Undocumented, since he pays rent and the LANDLORD pays the city : http://www.town-usa.com/statetax/statetaxlist.html
Beer Taxes, are the same paid by you or the Undocumented: http://www.taxadmin.org/fta/rate/beer.html
TAX DATA : http://www.taxfoundation.org/taxdata/show/245.html
Texan123
Truth? You forgot to add that illegal immigrants always obey driver’s license and liability insurance laws too.
Everyone knows how to claim more dependents than you actually have to avoid having income taxes held out. Most citizens are afraid of IRS Audits, with fines and penalties.
How many ITIN filers are audited each year? A big reason people beieve that illegal immigrants do not pay their fair share, is because there is no way to verify that they do. How do you verify how many wage earners are in a home and what the monthly wages really are? How to you prove that someone is being paid cash, under the table? And if you prove it, will local, state, or federal officials do anything about it?
glenda wehrs
just a comment i do believe we need to help everyone but i as a new widow 33years married housewife 3 children productive. now i will lose everything because i cant get ss that my husband paid into all his life he was 55 when he got liver cancer 4 months later he was gone. was approved for ssd but did not make it the 6 months waiting period, i am a paraprofessional in our school low income but have been there 14 years and will not quiet just to get help feel that we should help hard working citizens before others but that is not happening i am very didapointed in our system if anyone can tell me how this is fair that i lose everything and starve please respond to me if you can thank you
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