States balk at illegals program--Democratic areas rebel

The Washington Times ^ | June 6, 2011 | Stephan Dinan

[jazusamo]

Massachusetts announced Monday that it will refuse to join the federal government’s Secure Communities initiative, becoming the latest state to balk at the Obama administration’s key anti-illegal immigration program designed to target gang members and violent felons for deportation.

Following on the heels of Illinois and New York, which this year said they would try to opt out of the program, the move signals growing discontent from usually reliable Democratic territory over President Obama’s immigration policy, which is now drawing fire from both sides of the aisle.

“The governor and I are dubious of the commonwealth taking on the federal role of immigration enforcement,” Massachusetts Public Safety Secretary Mary Elizabeth Heffernan wrote to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the division of the Homeland Security Department that runs the program.

It comes as more states are challenging the Obama administration’s immigration efforts. From the right, Arizona has led a battle to empower local police to check immigration status, while the rebellion against Secure Communities highlights concerns from the left that Mr. Obama is deporting record numbers of illegal immigrants, many of whom do not have the extensive criminal records on which the president has said he wants to focus.

But it was unclear whether Massachusetts has any option. Secure Communities operates on fingerprints that local law enforcement agencies send to the FBI every time someone is arrested and booked. Homeland Security officials say they retain the right to run them through immigration databases to see whether there are illegal immigrants who should be prioritized for deportation.

“The federal government, not the state or local law enforcement agency, determines what immigration enforcement action, if any, is appropriate,” ICE spokeswoman Nicole A. Navas said. “Only federal officers make immigration decisions, and they do so only after an individual is arrested for a criminal...

[jazusamo]

The Secure Communities program is not optional.

Homeland Sec. “Confusion” Over Immigration Program (Napolitano lies)

[Da Coyote]

Let the “democratic communities” take care of 1) policing, 2) prisons, 3) all the unpaid insurance and social security, 4) tuitions, and oh yea, each ILLEGAL that gets a place at an ivy league school (their standards are now low enough even for non-English thanks to libs) displaces one liberal overspoiled brat.

[acapesket]

Keep it up Deval. Pretty soon we taxpayers will all be gone and it will be the Unions and the Gangs fighting over what little money is left.

Couldn’t happen to anyone better than you liberal losers.

[kabar]

The federal government should cut off all federal funding to those states. But it won’t. We already tolerate sanctuary cities, now it will extend to the states.

[HiJinx]

Ping!