Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey doesn't seem to understand that one can't be treated like a "second-class citizen" if one isn't a citizen in the first place.
On his radio show yesterday, Mark Levin played a clip of Menendez absolutely embarrassing himself.
Transcript
MARK LEVIN: Sen. Robert Menendez from New Jersey... He's in charge of electing more and more Left-wing Democrats to the Senate. Exactly what we need, don't you think? And he was on CNN today. See if you can make any sense of what he says here....
(Audio clip)
SEN. ROBERT MENENDEZ: Arizona has become the 'show me your papers' state. And if I was a citizen of Arizona or if I were visiting in Arizona, the only papers I would intend to show is the Constitution of the United States that says that I have rights as a citizen and that I am not a second-class citizen in this country.
(End clip)
LEVIN: No, you're not a citizen at all if you're an illegal... What are you talking about, you moron? I wonder if this fool has even read the Constitution. Does he even hear how stupid he sounds?
'Uh, I'm here illegally and I'm waving the Constitution around because I have rights as a citizen. I'm not a second-class citizen.'
No, a third, fourth, or fifth-class citizen either. You're not a citizen, Get it?
I think Menendez does get it. And Obama gets it, too. They all get that ILLEGAL immigrants are not citizens, but that's not how they're framing the debate.
They want to cloud the issue by focusing on ILLEGAL immigration as a civil rights matter rather than the law-breaking.
This isn't about being ANTI-immigration or against civil rights. It's about enforcing the law.
Video of Menendez and other Democrats protesting Arizona's law.
Expanded remarks from Menendez:
ROBERT MENENDEZ: I wanted to come to join with my colleagues from the Tri-Caucus and the House of Representatives and the national organizations who are here to not only protest a great injustice, but to say that this is slide back on the rights of each and every American.
Arizona has become the 'show me your papers' state. And if I was a citizen of Arizona or if I were visiting in Arizona, the only papers I would intend to show is the Constitution of the United States that says that I have rights as a citizen and that I am not a second-class citizen in this country. And that is in essence the slide that we are down here.
You know, I read the Arizona law and it is just replete with the type of broad descriptions that invite discrimination, that invite racial profiling, that invite violations of constitutional rights and civil rights. It requires officials and agencies to reasonably attempt to determine the immigration status of a person involved in a lawful contact.
Menendez is being so deceptive.
He's playing on people's fears to score political points. It's a disgrace.
According to Kris W. Kobach, the law will NOT require Arizona police officers to stop and question people.
Kobach explains:
The law only kicks in when a police officer already has made a "lawful contact" with a person, such as stopping him for breaking another law. The most likely contact is during the issuance of a speeding ticket. The law does not require the officer to begin questioning a person about his immigration status or to do anything the officer would not otherwise do.
Only after a stop is made, and subsequently the officer develops reasonable suspicion on his own that an immigration law has been violated, is any obligation imposed.
Menendez is a liar. He's a fear monger.
Arizona has NOT become the "show me your papers" state.
The people of Arizona don't deserve this berating.
It's wrong. It's so sleazy.
Unfortunately, it's so typical of the Obama adminstration and the Democrats.
2 comments:
Yet, if you own a business and hire these illegal aliens you go to jail. How does that work?
My wife's family has been in the U.S. (≈1900) nearly as long as mine (≈1880), but because her ancestors immigrated from Mexico and mine from from Holland, she and my children have a much greater chance of facing the consequences of this law than I do.
Though the letter of the law stipulates the process begins with "lawful contact" with authorities, I believe we can all agree in practice this is hardly a limiting factor. If my kids were, or simply suspected of being witness to an auto accident and questioned by police, and could not, or chose not, to provide ID or speak to officers, the process kicks in. Though acting completely within their constitutional rights, not only could they would be detained, but they would be required to be detained.
I would think that conservatives, by their vary nature wary of over-reaching government authority, would be the first to condemn such practice.
Yes, I have read the law, and yes agree illegal immigration should be dealt with strongly, but this is not the way.
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