Posted on 07/27/2004 5:41:49 PM PDT by VU4G10
SAN FRANCISCO -- Republican Senate candidate Bill Jones railed on Monday against a ballot measure that would grant noncitizens here the right to vote in school board elections, calling it a "slap in the face" to U.S. citizenship and the country's immigration laws. Speaking on the steps of San Francisco City Hall, the former secretary of state said the charter amendment would violate the California Constitution and erode public confidence in the electoral process. He said encouraging immigrants to become citizens is the best way to expand voter participation.
"I will vehemently oppose any attempt to grant Californians' precious right to vote to anyone who is not a citizen," said Jones, who is challenging Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer in this fall's election.
Jones criticized Boxer for remaining silent on the issue, but Boxer said Monday that she also opposes giving noncitizens the right to vote.
"I believe the right to vote should remain tied to citizenship," Boxer, who is attending the Democratic National Convention in Boston, said in a statement. "We need to get more people on the path to citizenship, instead of trying to change our election laws and our Constitution."
Boxer said the initiative grew out of parents wanting better educations for their children and that she is working in the Senate to secure more resources for schools.
Jones said that if the measure passes and winds up in the courts, he will write a legal brief opposing it and fight it in the U.S. Senate should he win the race against Boxer.
By a 9-2 vote last week, the Board of Supervisors agreed to place a charter amendment on the November ballot that would give parents or guardians of students at public schools the right to vote in school board races. The measure passed even though the city attorney said it would likely be challenged in the courts because the state constitution requires voters to be U.S. citizens.
Supporters say giving immigrants limited voting rights would further democratize society.
I really have to wonder how anyone that's behind this measure figures it has a chance in hell of standing up to SCOTUS review if it does get past the activisit judges in the lower courts...
For the legally illiterate, refresh my memory on what "SCOTUS" is.
"Supporters say giving (legal and illegal) immigrants limited voting rights would further DEMOCRATize society"
Supreme Court of the United States.
BUMP
San Francisco, like the other "sanctuary cities", should be put in the position of choosing between their love for illegal aliens and Federal funding.
This is a good move on Bill Jones' behalf in his run against Barbara Boxer.
Does anyone think Pandora's Box would have oppened her fat yap if this wasn't an election year. Our two Senators are a MAJOR source of embarassment to this state.
It looks to me like the republican hopeful and the democrat senator are on the same page. Both want amnesty to legalize the illegals so they can vote.
Boxer's votes have been routinely on the side of illegal immigration. I hope Jones wins in a landslide.
Of course she wouldln't open her mouth. She sits back and stupid people keep electing her over and over again. By the way, Illegals are already participating in voting. Motor/voter did that for us, and the Registrar recorder just says they don't have the manpower to enforce election laws.
I would like to think he would. With the media he has to contend with in this state, I doubt it. Then there's the Repbulican party leadership who, if the guy isn't two shades left of a moderate democrat, won't give him a dimes worth of support. Republicans basicly have two democrat parties to fight against in California.
Part of the reason Schwarzenegger ran was because these brain-dead idiots urged him to get in. Once he did, it was over. We could either vote for him or wind up a Mexican state.
I agree with that. Hermandad Nacional has been preparing them for citizenship tests. Several elections ago, they registered a number of illegals and they voted. Hermandad Nacional got their hands slapped, hardly anthing done about it, and continued right on with their government contract. Motor voter is another avenue for them. I agree.
We're getting there anyway, D1. Sad, huh? No help from the few conservatives here in CA.
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