LA Boycotts Arizona

Arizona, no Los Angeles for you!

From Reuters:

Los Angeles officials on Wednesday approved a ban on future business with Arizona in protest against its crackdown on illegal immigrants, becoming the largest U.S. city to impose such an economic boycott.

City Council members who voted 13-1 in favor of the punitive measure said it could affect about $8 million in contracts with Arizona, but Los Angeles must first decide which of those agreements it can break without triggering lawsuits.

Another $50 million in contracts will remain in place but the council directed city department heads to refrain from doing future business with Arizona or companies headquartered there whenever possible. The decision also suspends all city-related travel to the desert state.

"I cannot go to Arizona today without a passport," Councilman Ed Reyes said before the vote. "If I come across an officer who's had a bad day and feels the picture on my ID is not me, I could be summarily deported -- no questions asked. That is not American."

That is ridiculous. Reyes is making a fool of himself with such idiotic statements.

The article goes on to explain that Reyes' remarks are crazy.

Arizona's new law, which comes into effect at end-July, does not allow police to demand identification from individuals without cause or to summarily deport them. But it does require officers, during a lawful contact, to check the immigration status of anyone who they reasonably suspect is in the country illegally.

It's the kind of hysterical rhetoric from the likes of Reyes that is CREATING problems.

Reyes is lying about Arizona's law, plain and simple.

A spokesman for Arizona Governor Jan Brewer, who signed the bill on April 23, said "an economic boycott against innocent people just adds to the massive economic burden Arizonans have sustained for years due to the federal government's failure to secure our borders."

"It also appears that the L.A. City Council appears hopelessly out of touch with most of America on this issue," spokesman Paul Senseman said, as various polls have shown nationwide support for the state's enforcement of immigration laws.

That is absolutely correct.

The vast majority of Americans disagree with Obama's strong opposition to Arizona's law and his vilification of Arizona's government officials and authorities.

From the Los Angeles Times:

President Obama is opposed to the strict new illegal-immigrant law in Arizona. But a new poll now finds that he is in a shrinking minority of Americans and Democrats who do.

A new Pew Research Center Poll finds fully 73% of the country thinks police requesting immigration status documents is fine, while 67% think detaining someone for a status check is OK.

The poll reports that, overall, 59% approve of the law's broad provisions, while less than a third (32%) now oppose them. That is up significantly from a similar poll earlier this month.

Democrats, a large majority of whom originally opposed the law, are now....

... evenly split 45-46% approve-disapprove. The number of Democrats supporting the measure has been growing as more information spreads about its legal provisions and safeguards.

Republicans overwhelmingly approve the law (85%) signed by Republican Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer in frustration over federal inaction on securing the state's borders with Mexico. A solid majority of independents (64%) also support the controversial measure.

Los Angeles can boycott Arizona. Other cities can issue boycott orders.

So what?

Clearly, the American people stand with Arizona.

These boycott efforts to punish Arizona run counter to the views of the majority of Americans.

I don't think Arizona has any reason to be concerned about the lame actions of city councils bent on pushing a pro-amnesty agenda. American citizens don't back a boycott.

The more people learn about Arizona's law, the more support it receives.

Judging by the poll numbers, the measure really isn't controversial. It reflects the beliefs of the vast majority of U.S. citizens.