Posted on 12/24/2003 10:32:04 AM PST by Klickitat
Davis Pulls a Fast One on Lawsuit Over Proposition 187
By Ray Haynes
(The writer is a Republican who represents the 36th Senate District, in Riverside.)
Here is a note to the Federal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal: Politics change. One day, the supporters of an initiative are in office and are vigorously supporting that initiative. The next day, the opponents of that initiative are in charge. Governors and attorneys general do not have lifetime appointments like federal judges. Voters sometimes change their minds about who they want to represent them.
In 1997, supporters of Proposition 187, Pete Wilson and Dan Lungren, held the position of governor and attorney general. Two years later, outspoken opponents of Proposition 187, Gray Davis and Bill Lockyer, replaced them.
Some may be wondering why I would make this comment. The reason is simple. Two years ago, the Alan C. Nelson Foundation of Americans for Responsible Immigration, Sen. Dick Mountjoy and I attempted to intervene in the lawsuit challenging Proposition 187 filed by the League of United Latin American Citizens against Governor Wilson (LULAC v. Wilson) in federal court. Our motion to intervene was denied, and that denial was upheld on appeal, with the appeals court noting that Governor Wilson and Attorney General Lungren were doing a fine job of defending the initiative, thank you.
Two years later, we are at risk of losing the entire initiative due to a slick legal maneuver by the governor. He recently asked that the whole matter be referred to "mediation" to see if the matter could be settled. This is a cute trick, and will likely lead to the entire matter being shoved under the rug without the initiative ever receiving its fair day in court.
Governor Davis has said over and over that he opposes Proposition 187. LULAC has said over and over that they oppose Proposition 187. Attorney General Lockyer has said he opposes Proposition 187 and that Governor Davis is his client, and he will do whatever Davis tells him to do.
What a recipe for a sweetheart deal. Send the matter to mediation, which is an attempt to settle the lawsuit, work out the settlement, and dismiss the lawsuit. What settlement would be likely in such circumstances? The answer should be obvious.
In the settlement negotiations, Davis listens carefully to the arguments put forth by LULAC. In the midst of those discussions, he has a revelation. LULAC is right, Governor Davis exclaims!
"I don't know why I didn't see this before. We must dismiss the lawsuit now," he says. "Even my lawyer, Bill Lockyer, tells me this proposition is unconstitutional."
Another cute strategy is to send the case to mediation, and then do nothing. It just languishes on the settlement calendar forever, never to move. Either way, the case goes away. The voters are thwarted, and injustice is done. All in the name of good government and the Constitution.
Does anyone honestly believe that Davis will actually protect the initiative? He has always opposed it. He attacked it throughout his gubernatorial campaign as "wedge politics." He alluded to Governor Wilson's support of the initiative as evidence of racism on Wilson's part.
Davis declared an end to "wedge politics" after he got elected. All of his left-wing supporters thought this meant the end of Proposition 187.
His party has called upon him to dismiss the case. Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante holds daily press conferences attacking the governor for even going to mediation. The speaker of the Assembly, former ACLU director and labor organizer Antonio Villaraigosa, sponsored a resolution at the Democratic Party convention requesting Davis to dismiss the case. The pressure on the governor is tremendous.
Davis took the cautious route. He knows that dismissing the lawsuit would be disastrous. The tactic that he used will allow the whole matter to just die without controversy, or so he hopes. The court is allowing it to happen, either as a conscious conspirator in this attempt to thwart the will of the people, or as an ignorant participant in this unjust outcome.
Proposition 187 was enacted in 1994 with over 60 percent of the electorate of California voting for it. From the moment the initiative won, the left, including Villaraigosa, Bustamante, Senate President Pro Tem John Burton, Attorney General Bill Lockyer, and Davis began to attack those who voted for the initiative as racists. They failed to see the wisdom of the people in the vote—that is, that most people don't believe that if someone breaks the law, they ought to get government benefits for doing so.
Since the initiative has been in court, the left has continued to implement policies that expand the rights of those who are in this country illegally to get government health benefits, job-training benefits, breaks in tuition for higher education, welfare benefits, and other forms of government largesse.
In fact, many of those who opposed Proposition 187 are working to make sure it is difficult to find out if an illegal alien is trying to vote. They are trying to remove the requirements to prove identity or residency as a prerequisite to vote. They are even trying to remove the requirement that people register to vote. An easy way to make sure that illegals continue to get government benefits is to let them vote.
The referral to mediation was a cute trick. The governor may accomplish his goal because there is nothing that would stop him from doing so. The only great mystery in this whole episode is why the lieutenant governor is attacking him. The governor's move seemed like the smartest way to achieve what Bustamante wanted—a complete victory on Proposition 187. Perhaps the whole thing is a show, to make it look like Davis is trying to do the right thing by continuing on with the fight in favor of 187, when in fact he wants to make it go away. Bustamante's protestations would lead one to believe that the governor is sincerely pursuing justice in the appeal.
However, if he were truly seeking justice, he would have allowed the appeal to continue. There is no middle ground between constitutional and unconstitutional, and, for that reason, there is no way to settle this matter unless one side or the other rolls over and either eviscerates the mandates of Proposition 187 or dismisses the appeal.
Either way, the voters lose. I don't know the odds at the local Indian casinos, but I'm not betting in favor of the voters on this one. I think they lost last November.
No, but I believe you are. What do you mean by your term "illegal immigrants"?
Uhhh..that they are "illegal immigrants"?
What do you think this debate is about?
I can't believe you actually asked me if I admitted that "illegal immigrants" are illegal.
Too funny.
How would you know? It is quite possible for one's immigration status not to be legal, and yet behave as a completely law-abiding member of society.
In fact many illegal immigrants are more committed to law-abiding behavior because they know any run-in with law may result in deportation.
They instead constitute, by definition, a class of criminals that has broken the law to cross our borders.
Wrong again. Many DID NOT break any law to cross our borders at all, but merely overstayed their visas, work permits or permits to go to school in this country. The correct response is mass deportation, not mass legalization (or work permits for that matter...).
This is stupid, unworkable and would be polical suicide for anyone who attempted to propose such a thing.
Thank you! I'm all for getting better control of our borders.
But for the life of me, I can't understand the fear and contempt we see here for these poor little poverty stricken people who risked sneaking into this country out of desperation for a better life.
This is truly the ugly face of the radical right Dems use to demonize republicans.
You're not conservative...You're a nut.
Barry Goldwater is/was unelectable
Only if you have an inverted concept of morality.
The Bible says woe unto those who call good evil and evil good.
It also says that in the end times men like Bush would be hated simply because they are good.
Thank you for fulfilling Biblical prophecy.
Excellent point!
This is stupid, unworkable and would be polical suicide for anyone who attempted to propose such a thing.
I don't think the Buchananites have any idea of the cost in money or strain on the moral fabric of our society that their "let's jus build a fence and ship 'em all back to Africa...wait, I'm a hatin' Mexskins today...I mean Mexico" plan would incure. They seem to think that deporting 8 million people will be no trouble at all with no repercusion to our economy or way of life.
And they seem to think that American voters will have no trouble with blowing the limbs off Mexican children as they cross a landmine strewn border.
If conservative means giving up my humanity...then I'm not conservative.
Numbers count; call this morning and pass this on to everyone asking them to do the same. Let our voices be heard over politics!
We can't let these radicals put an ugly face on conservativism.
Thank God Bush is in office. We can get control of our borders without becoming the hateful and meanspirited stereo-types Dems try to paint us as.
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