Posted on 04/18/2008 11:09:36 AM PDT by Reagan is King
In July, 2006, the little known town of Hazleton in Pennsylvania became a key focal point in the national debate over immigration reform.
The council approved a controversial ordinance that granted the city's authorities extraordinary powers in dealing with undocumented immigrants and those who offered them employment.
The man behind the measure was the town's mayor, Lou Barletta, who has since become a leading figure of anti-immigrant campaigners in the US.
The law sought to punish businesses that hired undocumented workers and the landlords who rented out properties to them.
About a third of the former coal mining town's 30,000-strong population are Latino.
The law has since been blocked by a federal court, which declared it unconstitutional.
However, Mr Barletta, a Republican who was elected as mayor of Hazleton in 2000 and is now standing for the US Congress, remains proud of the measure.
'Protect community'
He said the proposal was necessary to grapple with what he describes as the negative impact on the town from the growth in undocumented immigrant population.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.bbc.co.uk ...
Thanks for trying Mr. Barletta. They're staying here because the bums in Washington want them here, not because they can't stop it.
Lou got the results he wanted. It is also worth noting that when Barletta ran for reelection, both parties nominated him as their nominee.
I don't think that it's so much because they want them here, as because their "contributors" do. They're still bums though.
That's unforgivably sloppy.
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