Get Arrested, Get Deported
This approach, used in Irving, Texas near where I live, makes sense to me:
At the heart of the contention is Irving police’s use of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Criminal Alien Program. The plan provides for round-the-clock communication with federal authorities and is designed to detain illegal immigrants who have been accused of a crime. It’s the latest tool being used by local governments in the absence of a federal overhaul of immigration laws.
“It does not deal with illegal aliens; it deals with criminal illegal aliens,” said Irving City Council member Tom Spink.
… Irving police have turned over at least 1,600 people to Immigration and Customs Enforcement since June 2006. In response, Mexican Consul Enrique Hubbard Urrea last week warned immigrants from his country to avoid Irving.
I suppose in most places today in the US, the norm is that when the police arrest someone that they know is an illegal immigrant, they just turn a blind eye to the immigration status of their detainee. To instead turn them over to federal authorities seems like common sense, because they are breaking US federal laws by being in the US illegally. I expect that the use of this Customs Enforcement’s Criminal Alien Program will spread as communities tire of seeing large influxes of illegal immigrants among them.
Ironically, some cities run by lefties actually do the opposite. Instead of turning illegal immigrants who have been arrested over to federal authorities, they actually deliberately shelter them from federal authorities. These sanctuary cities help illegal immigrants evade US laws. The logic of this is that we shouldn’t have laws saying people aren’t allowed to come to the US if they want to. In other words, the Open Borders mentality is still alive and well in America.
On some issues, there really is a culture war in the US. But the momentum is now on the side opposed to Open Borders. Just like how gun control advocates have slowly been beaten back, now the same must be done with Open Borders advocates.
