Kaine: Feds Show 'Real Bankruptcy' on Illegal Immigration
posted 8:20 pm Tue September 25, 2007 - Richmond, Va.
He said on his live monthly show on WTOP radio that it's an outrage that the federal government knows its immigration enforcement laws don't work, yet Congress won't pass new ones that will.
"The federal government is dumping this responsibility that's as pure a federal responsibility as there is off on states and local governments," Kaine said.
"It's not the border between West Virginia and Virginia that's the problem here," Kaine said.
Kaine noted on his radio show that Virginia has sent state National Guard troops to help guard the Mexican border. He noted that police and jailers already identify illegal aliens and turn them over to federal officials.
The state's Republican attorney general, Bob McDonnell, criticized the Democratic governor last month for opposing a partnership with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials that would train state police and agencies to detain and begin deportation proceedings against illegals.
Kaine said state police have no business being deputized to take on primary enforcement responsibility for federal immigration laws.
If local governments decide on their own to take part in the federal program, however, he has no problem with that.
State police officials already contact ICE when they encounter people not legally in the nation, as do jailers and state prison officials, Kaine said.
"The one danger would be if cities and counties each try to do their own thing. The problem is the feds don't have a uniform national policy that they're willing to enforce," he said.
In June, legislation failed in Congress that would have legalized up to 12 million unlawful immigrants while fortifying the border.
Some cities and counties, particularly in populous and suburban northern Virginia, are already enacting their own policies. Loudoun and Prince William County recently approved local policies denying many public services to illegal immigrants.
"We have 134 cities and counties in Virginia. So everybody kind of doing their own version of it will make it even more chaotic. I want to keep the pressure on the federal government to do what they're responsible to do," Kaine said.
Federal inaction has forced the debate over immigration into city halls, courthouses and even statehouses because some communities are feeling overwhelmed, said Del. David Albo, R-Fairfax County.
"I agree with the governor that the federal government has done nothing, but you can't just throw up your hands and say we can't do anything about it," Albo said.
Latest Comment on Kaine: Feds Show 'Real Bankruptcy' on Illegal Immigration
Tuckmeister
12:29 pm on 09/29/07
People have to remember that govenors just can't make and pass laws. It also has to be passed by the state legislature, just like our house and congress at the federal level. The problem is here that NO ONE is proposing laws at the state and federal levels to help alleviate our current crisis. OR, these laws are tacked on as some amendment to some crap law that will be vetoed down. It's just going to be a matter of time until something really really bad happens and an illegal alien is the root cause of the tragedy. We're a cause and do something about it society. Our govenment doesn't do SQUAT until something bad happens, there is little preventative items out there. We just wait until something bad happens and THEN make laws about it. I support camps surrounded by armed guards, dogs and razor fence where we can hunt and find all illegal aliens from this country (from ANY nation), round them up, throw them in the camps where they will be documented, fingerprinted, photographed and deported back to their home countries at their countries cost!!! And I don't want to hear other people say it's just like the concentration camps of Germany or the camps where we held Japanese Americans a long time ago and what not. It's NOT. They will be humanely treated, fed when needed and then booted out of our country. Isn't this what other countries have in place??
Not a member yet? Click Here to sign up.
Please leave your comments below:
Messages that harass, abuse or threaten other members; have obscene or otherwise objectionable content; have spam, commercial or
advertising content or inappropriate links may be removed and may result in the loss of your posting privileges.
Please do not post any private information unless you want it to be available publicly.
Never assume that you are completely anonymous and cannot be identified by your posts.
© 2007 WJLA-TV
© 2007 The Associated Press
All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
The 'RUNNING MAN' icon is a registered trademark of America Online, Inc.
ABC 7 News to leave comments on news stories.