Arizona's actions completely Constitutional

by JB Williams

The term “naturalization” appears in the US Constitution, under Article I – Section VIII – Clause IV – which assigns the federal government via the Legislative Branch, the power – “To establish a uniform Rule of Naturalization;” – a legal means and method by which immigrants can gain access to U.S. citizenship via an organized and controlled naturalization process.

In Hampton v. Mow Sun Wong, 426 U.S. 88 [1976] the US Supreme Court issued a ruling stating that the power of the federal government to establish a uniform Rule of Naturalization implies the federal power to regulate immigration.

As we know, federal immigration and naturalization laws exist in the United States, providing immigrants a legal means and method by which to become a citizen of the United States. Entering the U.S. without the expressed permission of the U.S. has at all times in modern history, been a “crime.” This crime has at all times had specific penalties attached, under both federal and state laws.

The INS (Immigration and Naturalization Service) exists for the sole purpose of helping immigrants enter the U.S. legally. ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) exists for the sole purpose of enforcing U.S. immigration, naturalization and customs laws.

Without secure borders and the right to control our borders, the United States cannot be a “sovereign nation.” All sovereign nations have geographical borders and the right to control who enters the nation, by what means, and penalize those who enter illegally.

Immigrants need to respect our Laws

I believe most “illegal immigrants” to be decent, hard working people, simply seeking the many benefits of life in the land of milk and honey. Had they entered our country legally, most would be quite welcome here, as many of them make better American citizens than some legal citizens.

Personally, I’d support keeping all twenty-million illegal Mexicans if we could deport twenty-million whiny Democratic Socialists like Obama, Pelosi and Reid in exchange. Can I get someone to second this motion - please?

But that’s not the options before us as a nation. I wish it were… Our options are to enforce or forget our borders. There is no in-between… We don’t let bank robbers go just because we didn’t get around to arresting them until their tenth bank robbery. They will be held accountable for all ten robberies.

Feds and INS ignoring their responsibilities

In recent years, federal enforcement of existing laws has been half-hearted at best. INS and ICE do indeed search for, capture, detain and deport people who enter the U.S. illegally. However, they have not done so consistently, effectively or with any vigor.

As a result, we now find that our nation has a severe illegal immigrant problem with an estimated twenty-million “undocumented immigrants” living and working in the U.S. illegally. This means that we have an estimated twenty-million “criminal invaders” living among us

States Rights and Responsibilities

What are the states supposed to do when the federal government fails? Go down with the ship?

Arizona is a border state with a unique stake in the matter of illegal immigration. They have waited for decades for the federal government to enforce federal immigration laws and the federal government clearly has no intention of doing so. In fact, the federal government intends to challenge Arizona’s right to secure their own southern border, asserting that illegal immigration is some type of new civil right.

Since Mexican President Calderón has already issued a travel warning to citizens of Mexico, I’d day that the new Arizona law is already working, before even going into effect. That was its purpose, right? To put Mexico on notice that its citizens could no longer flood across the Arizona border - trafficking drugs, murder and mayhem into the United States, as if illegal activity is some kind of bizarre civil right in America…

Illegal Immigration breaking State Budgets

The problems related to illegal immigration once only affected border states. The State of California is bankrupt mostly due to the largest population of illegal immigrants in the nation and the high cost of caring for those illegals on the taxpayer’s dime. If it weren’t for federal funding and loans, California would already be a third world country in complete anarchy, most likely fenced off from the rest of the nation.

Today, illegal immigration is bankrupting states across the country, including non-border states like Georgia, which has already announced that it will follow Arizona’s lead on illegal immigration reform. I’m sure other states will follow suit over the coming days and weeks.

The simple fact is - the federal government has failed horrifically in the matter of illegal immigration and the states do not have to sit on their hands and pay the price of that failure. They have the power, the right and a responsibility to their legal citizens, to address the problem.

At the end of the day, if the states fail to do what the federal government should but won’t do, then the people will have the right to do it themselves. I don’t think that’s how we want to resolve this problem… do you?