WHAT PART OF ILLEGAL DON’T YOU UNDERSTAND?
WHAT PART OF ILLEGAL DON’T YOU UNDERSTAND??? There is always one schmuck that needs to recycle that bumper sticker quote in the comments section of an immigration article. And it has to be in CAPS!! And it has to have multiple question marks and perhaps a couple exclamation points. If it’s not in CAPS and does not have the multiple punctuations, than the point is not made. So, let me be that schmuck today and pose that question to Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu, the Arizona State Militia, Russell Pearce, gubernatorial candidate Frank Riggs and congressional candidate/newest member of the Village People, Adam Kwasman: WHAT PART OF ILLEGAL DON’T YOU UNDERSTAND??!?!?
This lesson is for all those law-abiding folks that came to protest that fictional bus carrying unaccompanied migrant youths (aka UAC’s) to Oracle, Arizona on Tuesday. The minors are being held by the U.S. government pursuant to the Trafficking Victims Protections Reauthorization Act (TVPRA). The TVPRA instructs our government to transfer the custody of unaccompanied minors to the custody of Health and Human Services (HHS). Once in the custody of HHS, the minors are processed for possible removal from the United States which includes evaluation of whether the minor can remain in the U.S. in some form of lawful status. It is the LAW that was originally signed by President George W. Bush in 2008.
If law-abiding U.S. citizens don’t like the TVPRA or its unintended consequences, lobby to get it amended. Feel free to peacefully assemble and protest, but don’t block the bus from going to its intended destination (a la the protestors in Murrieta, California). According to an article by Stephen Lemons in the Phoenix New Times, Oracle resident Robert Skiba was originally tipped off to this busload of migrant youths and Mr. Skiba told Mr. Lemons:
“We’re going to engage in peaceful assembly and if these buses with these people from Central America come in, we’re going to stop it. we’re going to turn them around and send them back, just like they did in Murrieta, California.”
Sheriff Babeu even posted on his Facebook page that the “children should be returned to their home country – not to Oracle, Arizona paid for by American taxpayers.” But, that’s not how it works in the good ‘ol United States, if there is a law we are supposed to follow it. Right Mr. Sheriff? Mr. Law Enforcer?
So, if you are following closely, you will realize that the minors that turned themselves into the U.S. Department of Homeland Security are not breaking the law. In fact, they may not even be “illegal”. But, what about the protestors? Would their attempts to stop the bus and send it back be breaking the law? It turns out that if you read the Arizona Revised Statute, not only would these protestors be breaking the law, there are several possible statutes that they could have been violating including:
13-2402. Obstructing governmental operations, which is a class 1 misdemeanor;
13-2906. Obstructing a highway or other public thoroughfare, which is a class 3 misdemeanor; and
13-2908. Criminal nuisance, which is a class 3 misdemeanor.
Perhaps there are other laws that they could have violated in the process, but those are just a few examples. So, the irony of this situation is that the minors on the bus would not be the law breakers, the bus blockers would have been! Would Sheriff Babeu, who allegedly conspired in the planning of this protest and who always preaches the rule of law, have arrested the bus blockers?
There is no doubt our immigration laws are currently a mess and are in dire need for reform. If you asked Mr. Kwasman, Mr. Pearce and others if they support the comprehensive immigration reform bill that’s before congress they would undoubtedly respond “no”. They will tell you that we need to enforce the laws on our books right now! That if we enforce our laws and seal our border with a triple border fence, drones and man-eating alligators in a moat, we might solve our immigration problems. But, the irony of all this is that the moment they realized they didn’t like one of our current immigration-related laws (the TVPRA) they scream for reform and encourage illegal activity against immigrants.
To that I ask them: WHAT PART OF ILLEGAL DON’T YOU UNDERSTAND?
(Editor’s Note: This was originally published at Goldman’s Blogger.)
This article appears in Jul 17-23, 2014.
Careful, Henry! You’ll start confusing people with facts and get them all riled up because they can’t comprehend!
When you call those who use slogans you don’t like ‘Schmucks” you are showing the shallowness of your argument and undermining whatever facts and arguments you can bring to bear in support of your position. Name calling and ad hominem attacks are about as ineffective as yelling “Go home to your own country” at a bunch of kids on their way to summer camp.
I hope you remember this recitation of statutes these protesters may have broken the next time people of an entirely different political persuasion attempt to block buses carrying people about to be deported for entering the country illegally.
To Marty’s point, I wonder if those stopping buses of immigrant children would defend the first amendment rights and civil disobedience acts of pro-immigrant & human rights activists. Back in October of last year, activists stopped buses full of immigrants and have been charged with felonies. Those activists were protesting the fast food version of justice immigrants are provided at operation streamline hearings. Why is it that one shade of activist gets arrested and charged with felonies when another shade is not. Hell the protesters in Murrieta and Oracle are being supported, if not outright led, by local law enforcement. In Murrieta, it wasn’t the protesters that were turning back buses full of immigrants, it was the local police. In Oracle, it was Paul Babeu who orchestrated and was ready to use his officers to post against a federal agency. why haven’t those parties been held responsible? Why are those who stand for human rights get the heavy hand of the law? There definitely an inequity in the handling of all of this. Most importantly to the migrants who get pushed/pulled out of their places of origin and then again here which is where the push/pull factors originate from.
Yup, facts have a liberal bias. These xenophobic clowns are all about the rule of law- except when they’re not. To them, the rule of law only counts when it conveniently gives them a chance to wallow in their hatred. Keep screaming at school children, wingnuts. Show the whole world what horrible people you really are…
Hey, Rangers. This was originally written by Mo Goldman. He’s the mastermind behind this op-ed. The author field didn’t updated like it should have. Sorry for the confusion.
Reminds me of 2006 – we were living in Oracle when the Glow festival held annually at the Triangle L Ranch was invaded by Pinal County Sheriff’s deputies. Eight deputies raided what they thought was a rave or worse and stampeded the peaceful arts festival frightening the families gathered there including kids and elderly residents. Not quite a police riot but an ugly incident that with a different crowd might have erupted into violence.
http://www.tucsonnewsnow.com/story/5406071…
The difference was the Sheriff at that time acknowledged the deputies’ terrible judgement and apologized for their behavior. This time the sheriff orchestrated the near mayhem and insists he did nothing wrong in leaking the news of an invasion of disease ridden aliens to his friend, a rabble rousing xenophobe, and his dozens of followers.
If you are curious about the people of Oracle drive up and attend this year’s Glow festival in September. Not quite Woodstock – but a far cry from Murietta.
Rick, thanks for that reminder …
These illegals are being shipped all around the country have not been screened properly for diseases or the MS13 gang members haven’t been removed. There was two sent from Nogales sent to a California hospital with a high fever and it it hard telling how many more there are that we are not being told about.
This is all political so they can force amnesty on us like all the other crap that has been forced on us. This is a stupid move because it is going to do more harm to the economy than has already been done. Cheap labor and more votes for the democrats what it is all about.
And right on cue, along comes trainmanswife as further evidence of the cult of fear, hatred, xenophobia and ignorance that is sweeping this country. Like clockwork, out come the ugly lies in an effort to dehumanize these poor kids- it makes it easier to hate them if you can reduce them to some sort of non-human other.
Everything in that post is a lie. These kids are thoroughly screened on the spot for infectious diseases and are given a TB test and all necessary vaccinations immediately, despite the fact that all these countries routinely give all their children the BCG vaccination (unlike the U.S.). In fact the overall vaccination rate for these countries is every bit as good as the rate for U.S. children, all of them over 90%. Mexico’s rate of 98% of children vaccinated far eclipses ours at 93-94% (thanks anti vaxxer nitwits). But calling them disease ridden vermin helps people like trainmanswife rationalize their irrational hatred and sleep better at night. Two kids get sent to a hospital for a fever- out of roughly 50,000. EVERYBODY PANIC!
These children are also thoroughly screened for gang activity and/or criminal records and NO child that fails these screenings is released. The idea that ruthless Central American gang bangers are wandering the streets of America is just another vicious lie told to justify the irrational fear and hate. But the best part is, somehow the deteriorating political situation and the drug violence in Central America is all Obama’s doing. He has purposely caused all this to happen (why? who knows? but if you irrationally hate the president, everything bad that happens anywhere on the planet is his doing as part of some secret plan to do something or another).
The best part is the tinfoil hat reasoning for all this. Turns out the president went down to Central America to personally convince thousands of families to send their children on a long perilous voyage across multiple countries in the blazing heat with nothing to their names other than the clothes on their back- all as a favor to help some political party half a world away win some election that has nothing to do with them. It makes perfect sense- those Honduran families aren’t worrying about the coup d’état in their own country, or the gangs, or the drugs or the death squads or the rampant violence or hunger-no, their number one priority is to risk their kids’ lives to vote in some foreign country ten years in the future when they’re actually old enough to vote.
This is the sort of moonbat, completely crazy conspiracy theory that passes for rational thinking on the right these days. Yes, the plight of those poor refugees is nothing but a Democratic plot to flood the country with eight year old landscapers, nine year old dishwashers and hotel maids and an army of ten year old voters marching on our polling places this year to influence the mid-term elections. But hey, whatever helps you wingnuts justify your irrational hate and xenophobia, right? If you clowns had an ounce of sense you’d be ashamed of yourselves.
Trainman’s wife, I think that it is the republic-cannots and wont’s who desire cheap labor. Why do you think the GOP is against the minimum wage? More profits for GOP contributors. Do facts make any sense to you? Do some more reading, watch less Fox News, and you won’t feel like you are the caboose.
g iven the number of out of state plates down there on Tuesday, I am sure those nice militia types blocking the road just didn’t know it was illegal……..Although our friendly sheriff made it perfectly clear to those of us 3 miles down the road peacefully holding up signs of bienevidos (not nearly as much media coverage of us) that we were not to interfere with traffic. Guess he forgot to tell the militia guys and the politicos.
“if there is a law we are supposed to follow it.”
Like Obama’s non-enforcement of immigration laws that started this mess? Aka DACA? Or the immigration protesters getting under BP vehicles downtown which was lauded in the Weekly. Please. Could this be any more hypocritical?
bslap,
George HW Bush signed a law stating that children immigrating from non border countries (Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador for example) NOT be deported. We are following a Republican sponsored law.
Now there’s a bitch-slap for you, Bslap. Now turn the other cheek. Muchas gracias, Mr. Rondo for the undeniable FACT!
Does anyone remember Elian Gonzalez? I might not recall his name correctly. The Cuban boy whose mother died escaping from Cuba and the battle to get him American citizenship, which he (at 6 years old) wasn’t particularly seeking. What a tempest that one was! What was your individual position back then and why? Is there any relationship to your position on these refugees?
I can’t “like” this column enough. I’m so sick of hearing that “Obama” is sending these kids when it all starts with that 2008 law that was, if not unanimously, then damn near unanimously passed in both houses of Congress before the then-president (NOT Obama!) signed it. Change or amend that law. Don’t take it out on a bunch of scared kids.
This whole thing would have been hilarious if it were a dark comedy, a la “Citizen Ruth,” but watching it in real life was just sad, sad, sad.
Regarding so-called “gang” affiliations: Let’s not forget that Sycamore Canyon Academy, where the no-show bus was supposedly headed, is in fact a boys reform school that already houses dozens of young men with criminal and gang histories. It’s a good program, and from what I understand it really does help those kids. But please. If people are going to be up in arms about “gang members” occupying those premises, then they need to take a look at what’s already there.
“bslap,
George HW Bush signed a law stating that children immigrating from non border countries (Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador for example) NOT be deported. We are following a Republican sponsored law.”
And the law Obama is violating was passed under Clinton. Doesn’t matter because I didn’t say we shouldn’t follow the law.
I said this article was hypocritical when it chastised protesters for not following a law when it has lauded other examples of not following the law. It’s all based on whether the author agrees with the law or not.
Immigration reform is just cover for higher immigration, lower wages, and more environmental degradation to support high profits for a few. They lead liberals around by making them pissed off at conservatives and appealing to their guild so they get behind immigration reform that’s against their own interests.
I need to correct my own comment. The immigration law I commented about was signed by George W, not his father George HW. Apologies for my inaccuracy. So Clinton was long gone at this point.
The original law was passed by a Republican Congress and signed by Clinton. What Bush signed was a re-authorization of the law. That doesn’t change the fact that the United States is culpable in the destruction of the economies and destabilization of the governments of the countries these child refugees come from. We should remember that they are refugees.
test
This article is stupid. MAURICE GOLDMAN is a Jew. Israel has a system of Apartheid against the Palestinians. Israel is not allowing millions of illegal aliens into THEIR country.
his gay sheriff was my lover as one of many young guys he likes. I think he is the dirties person i ever met, not only into politics, but personally, not even mention sexually. he is sick in many aspects, he needs help. he is narcissist. he posted nude pictures on internet when he was in a public office and on business trips.