Posted on 11/02/2005 8:14:42 AM PST by LNewman
Once Minuteman Project founder Jim Gilchrist jumped into the 48th Congressional District race, illegal immigration became a standard talking point.
With state Sen. John Campbell leading in the contest to replace former Rep. Chris Cox, some potential candidates to fill Campbell's Senate seat -- should it open up -- expect to discuss the immigration issue as part of their campaigns.
"As I travel around my district and the Senate district and the state for that matter, it seems to be an issue that is of great importance to the electorate in California," said Huntington Beach Republican Assemblyman Tom Harman, who in late June became the first declared candidate in the tentative Senate race.
Other possible candidates for the 35th District Senate seat are Orange County Board of Education President Alexandria Coronado, Dana Point City Councilwoman Diane Harkey and Irvine City Councilwoman Christina Shea. All are Republicans, as is Campbell.
The U.S. House seat opened up in August, when Cox was appointed chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Coronado said when she was on the Anaheim Union High School District board in 1999, the board wrote a resolution asking for federal reimbursement for educating illegal immigrants.
"We took a lot of heat for it, but we brought national attention to the issue," she said.
Coronado, Harman and Harkey all said they support a plan for a state border police force, a statewide initiative backed by Campbell that could appear on the 2006 ballot.
"We saw that private citizens under the Minutemen could control the borders," Harkey said. "We don't have either the capacity or the will to do it at the federal level."
Shea said she thinks immigration should be a concern for anyone serving the state, but she disagreed that it's a big factor in the potential Senate race.
"Clearly it's a federal issue," she said. "The funding for patrolling our borders is based at the federal level.... I don't see that as a major focus in our campaign."
As a candidate, Shea said her top issues would be education, living within the state's budget and preserving open space.
In the congressional race, some were looking at voters' response to illegal immigration as a barometer of how important the issue is to core GOP voters. Some politicos don't think immigration is a critical issue in Orange County, but it's still expected to crop up in future elections.
UC Irvine political scientist Louis DeSipio said what happens in the Dec. 6 congressional general election -- when Campbell faces Gilchrist and three other candidates -- will indicate how important immigration will be in a subsequent state Senate race.
"I think the statewide electorate is a little more concerned about unauthorized migration generally than this particular population" in Orange County, DeSipio said.
Regardless of how big an issue immigration proves to be in a potential Senate race, DeSipio said, "I think we'll see more of it in 2006."
Is immigration an issue that will affect how you vote in coming elections?
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* ALICIA ROBINSON covers government and politics. She may be reached at (714) 966-4626 or by e-mail at alicia.robinson@latimes.com.
Ping
Is immigration an issue that will affect how you vote in coming elections?
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It won't be, if Washington continues its COLLECTIVE effort to ignore it, at the expense of the country. It will only become an issue if there are sincere conservatives who will fight for what is right for America's REAL CITIZENS.
I hope this issue becomes a siren song for the insincere, posturing policy wonks. I also hope that a real leader, who truly cares and said so prior to this being 'trendy' becomes our next president. FRegards....
Campbell is touted by the spin doctors as the "obvious winner," and promoted here as a supporter for a state border police force.
Campbell's voting record includes voting in the Assembly to allow in-state tuition for undocumented immigrants attending state colleges and another vote to allow the acceptance of Mexican consular cards for identification.
"It will only become an issue if there are sincere conservatives who will fight for what is right for America's REAL CITIZENS."
And that fight is now, the pre-primary phase. Once the front loaded primary starts, it will already be too late. At that point, it will be what we do now versus the fat rolodex.
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Protect our borders and coastlines from all foreign invaders!
Support our Minutemen Patriots!
Be Ever Vigilant ~ Bump!
"Clearly it's a federal issue," she said. "The funding for patrolling our borders is based at the federal level.... I don't see that as a major focus in our campaign."
Well, it should be.
"As a candidate, Shea said her top issues would be education, living within the state's budget and preserving open space."
Pretty short sighted of her not to see that uncontrolled immigration effects her top issues.
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