Illegal Immigration

By Timothy Lee Johnson

The estimates for illegal immigrant populations in California are staggering. The effects on California's economy is no less dramatic.

In an excerpt of an article written by Heather Macdonald, a contributing editor to City Journal, the problem of illegal immigration is brought home:

"Some of the most violent criminals at large today are illegal aliens. Yet in cities where crime from these lawbreakers is highest, the police cannot use the most obvious tool to apprehend them: their immigration status. In Los Angeles, for example, dozens of gang members from a ruthless Salvadoran prison gang have snuck back into town after having been deported for such crimes as murder, shootings, and drug trafficking. Police officers know who they are and know that their mere presence in the country is a felony. Yet should an LAPD officer arrest an illegal gangbanger for felonious reentry, it is the officer who will be treated as a criminal by his own department -- for violating the LAPD's rule against enforcing immigration law."

"The LAPD's ban on immigration enforcement is replicated in immigrant-heavy localities across the country -- in New York, Chicago, Austin, San Diego, and Houston, for example. These so-called "sanctuary policies" generally prohibit a city's employees, including the police, from reporting immigration violations to federal authorities."

"The most striking political constant in the last four decades of immigration policy is the overwhelming popular desire to rein in immigration, and the utter pulverization of that desire by special interests. No poll has ever shown that Americans want ever-more open borders, yet that is exactly what the elites deliver year after year. If the idea of giving voting rights to non-citizen majorities catches on -- and don't be surprised if it does -- Americans could be faced with the ultimate absurdity of people outside the social compact making rules for those inside it."

We must sweep aside partisan politics and special interest influence in order to address this issue. California must take the initiative and lead the way in immigration reform. As your senator, I will not shrink from confrontations with those who have financial interests in keeping the status quo. In order for California to have a real chance at a lasting economic recovery, illegal immigration must be contained.