Another Front-Page Editorial In The WashPo
By Greg L | 6 May 2008 | Illegal Aliens, Prince William County | 31 Comments
Frederick County, Maryland is following the lead of Prince William County and seeking local solutions to help address the impacts of illegal immigration, prompting the Washington Post to deliver a typical swipe that is as ridiculous as it is factually challenged. I wouldn’t be surprised if there will be plenty of other opportunities in the future for the Post to bemoan an increasing number of localities in the area that are committed to defending the rule of law. I just wish they’d confine their editorials to the editorial page, and not try to run them as news stories.
Suddenly, however, their presence is igniting a controversy that some fear could escalate into the kind of war over illegal immigration that has torn apart Prince William County. In the past month, the Frederick County sheriff has joined with federal authorities to identify and deport illegal immigrants, and county commissioners have proposed legislation to ban free translation of county business and require public schools to track down students who are in the United States illegally.
When civic activists engage their local elected officials on subjects that the Washington Post approves of, it’s laudatory participation by the public in the legislative process. Even “courageous”. When the reason for this civic engagement happens to be concerns about illegal aliens, the Post feels it somehow “tears apart” a community. Since Pam Constable only ventures into Prince William County when she’s working on another story about those hard-working “illegal immigrants, she must have missed how neighborhoods in Prince William County are rapidly recovering from being the flophouse districts she observed about a year ago when she made the first of her trips into the area. Even her own paper is reluctantly starting to face up to the dramatic recovery that is happening in Prince William County, but that doesn’t stop it from trying to senselessly whine about “division” and being “torn apart”.
The legislation referred to in the article is hardly an effort to “require public schools to track down students who are in the United States illegally”, as the Post further editorializes. The proposal actually required that the public schools to collect information regarding the legal status of students enrolled in the schools, without making enrollment conditional on the information provided. After complaining that legislative initiatives to combat the unlawful presence of illegal aliens are not substantiated with sufficient data, the Post then tries to demonize any efforts to actually collect data about the number of illegal aliens present in a community and the costs they impose on local taxpayers. It’s an interesting tactic to complain that solutions to this problem aren’t researched to their level of satisfaction, and then work to prevent any attempts to actually research the problem.
The Post has wrongly asserted that this proposal violates the 1982 Plyer v. Doe Supreme Court decision (457 U.S. 202), but apparently never bothered to actually read that decision, which never addresses the issue of collecting data. The decision simply requires public schools to educate illegal aliens at taxpayer expense. I’m told that doing research to determine whether what you’re told as a reporter is accurate or not would require the actual practice journalism, which always seems to pose a particular challenge to Washington Post reporters when they’re covering this topic. Instead, they just trot out this editorializing without any attempt to substantiate the argument they’re offering:
Despite the contretemps, residents say there is little chance that Frederick will become as bitterly divided as Prince William, where officials approved a number of policies last year to drive out illegal immigrants. In Frederick, the recent proposals to halt public translation services and count illegal pupils are unlikely to become law, in part because they may conflict with state and federal statutes.
Notice that at first they’re talking about “tracking down” students, and now it’s “count illegal pupils”? Which is it folks? And how about having the Post actually tell readers why they believe that providing public documents in English and documenting the burden of educating illegal aliens on local taxpayers “conflict with state and federal statutes”? If they really believe this hogwash, they should be able to document the basis for that belief in a newspaper article. When one intends to commit journalism, rather than pony up an editorial on the front page of the paper as was done here, assertions of fact require substantiation. Of course there is no substantiation here, because those assertions of fact are actually false, and patently so.
If the Post was actually interested in documenting “bitter division”, they’d be well advised to visit a place like Maywood, California and see what happens when the supporters of illegal aliens start trying to run the show. Since they seem to be so challenged in actually uncovering the truth, here’s a little help:
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Heck, Plyer v. Doe should be challenged anyway. With today’s court, I’d bet that it would be overturned.
Don’t count on that Riley. With the RINOs that are in office now I highly doubt it. Judges tend to be more sympathetic to human tribulations causes like this anyway.
Localities are falling in left and right to start cracking down on this lawlessness though. If the Feds think that we are all going to sit idly by and watch them give amnesty to 20+ million line cutters and invaders then they have got a serious dose of reality to swallow if they try.
Nothing, again, NOTHING, no law, federal, state, or local, and no court case in this or any other jurisdiction, would prevent any school board from adopting a policy intended to accurately count the number of students enrolled who are in the country without authorization.
Would Illegal Invader aider and abettors jump on such a policy, claiming it would have a “chilling effect” on illegal invader children seeking an education at legal, taxpaying residents’ expense? You betcha. The ACLU would be on it like a bum on a watercress sandwich. Whether or not they could prove such a “chilling effect,” and whether or not the little illegal darlins have an inherent right to be free from such a “chilling effect,” that outweighs a jursidiction’s interest in knowing how my tax dollars are being spent is a question that has not been addressed by any court of competent jurisdiction, that I can find. Maybe a few attorneys general and local municipal attorneys have rendered opinions, but those have to be looked at from the perspective of someone who has an interest in avoiding work. If anyone out there (including the fat broad’s bloggers) has ANY citation contrary to this assertion, I would appreciate you posting it here. Please don’t refer me to another newspaper article.
I don’t think the rule of law resolution has torn apart PWC at all! Instead, I see a county that was ignoring declining neighborhoods and increased crime, and responded to these problems by uniting as a community to support the laws of our nation and our commonwealth. Instead of compaining that somebody ought to do something, the majority in the community took action, and this has resulted in dramatic improvements in a few short months. This kind of success comes from working together, not tearing apart.
WMAL has been running a statement by a spokesman for Casa de Marylandin which she says that the illegals being rounded up by Frederick County are honest, hardworking people who’s only “problem” is that they don’t have the documentation to be in the country. And WMAL continues to insist on the phrase “immigrant advocate groups” as opposed to the more truthful (and very un-PC) “illegal immigrant advocate groups”.
Another putative illegal alien rapes a 10 year old girl in Maryland. Sick.
http://www.wtop.com/?nid=598&sid=1398762
The time has come for local boards of education to address the illegal alien issue because of the money being spent to educate their children. The attempt to count them is a prerequisite and the apologists know it. When a school board can show that x amount of dollars are being funneled away from legal residents, Plyer V. Doe will be overturned. Laws will be passed to ensure that only those who are legal residents will receive public benefits.
Take away their reasons to be here and they will leave.
Still waiting.
Well even as much reason as I have to loathe illegal aliens and what they have done to our communities, I can’t support a measure to keep them from being educated. We have enough problems with gangs already and I can’t even imagine how bad that would be if we suddenly had tens of thousands of kids running the streets all day looking for something to do. We NEED to educate these kids while they are here and there is no way around that.
MdMan- I read the article..
It is awful and disgusting, but where does it say he is illegal? you got to try and stay focused on the illegal issues, I dont think you want to appear as discriminating…do you?
When you make an open comment like that, people will tend to ignore you and just assume your an idot racist..(Not trying to be sarcastic) I’m just an occasional reader and I don’t know where I stand on this issue yet, I tend to go back and fourth but when someone makes a statement like that, you come across as…well….ignorant..Kinda Archie Bunker-ish..
park’d
I’d say there’s an alternative to either educating illegal aliens at taxpayer expense, or allowing underage illegal alien children to roam the streets, potentially become involved in gangs, and then be illiterate day laborers congregating at every local seven-eleven.
You could encourage these illegal aliens to return home.
Park’d: I agree with you that we should educate the little illegal darlings, but shouldn’t we count how many we’re educating?
Sure count them if you want but they are still here and they aren’t all leaving. As soon as you count them then 6 months later there will either be a lot more or a lot less anyway and you’ll just have to count them again. They are like gypsies and follow the jobs and the money. Ideally I want them all to go home too but they aren’t doing that. If we would demand that the government start cracking the knuckles of the employers then we wouldn’t need to spend all of this money on arresting and jailing illegal aliens. Take away the carrot and they will move on to greener pastures but that might mean that the politicians would have to bite the hand that feeds them (the corporations demanding the cheap labor). Politicians and lawyers are the root of all evil.
Advocator- I guess I am wondering why the need to count them..Their only “crime” was being born to parents who came here illegally..If they were carried here (Minors, over the border) then shouldn’t they be considered American Citizens and have just as much right to be educated?
See nothing is ever black and white, Here is yet another Gray area…..
There is no other body of law to my knowledge that grants blanket amnesty to a violator if they are under a certain age, although the penalties applied and the court that may adjudicate the case may be different for a minor. If a someone steals a car, whether they are a minor or not has nothing to do with the determination of whether they broke the law or not.
You’re deliberately trying to introduce a “gray area” where none currently exists. The law is, and should remain pretty clear about this: unauthorized entry is against the law, period. Rewarding this unlawful behavior with a grant of amnesty will only serve to encourage additional unlawful behavior in the future.
And it has encouraged it to this point, massively.
In reply to OHNO! [3:17 post]:
Reasons for accounting:
So we can bill the feds for educating them.
So we can plan ESOL and remedial classes and teachers.
So we can guestimate the no of immunizations we need to protect other kids who may not have immunity to the exotic germs brought in from other climes.
So we know how much of our tax dollars are being spent on kids who really shouldn’t be here (even if they are innocent victims of their parents’ transgression).
So legal residents can make a decision on whether or not they want to remain in a jurisdiction that has that expense. It may turn out that the number is so minimal and the expense so low that our time and effort would be better spent on other issues.
I could think of other reasons, but that’s a short list to start with.
If they were not born here, they are not US citizens (with some easily proven exceptions). If you think they should be, that’s an opinion, but I’d prefer to deal in reality. But your position points out a common attribute of Liberal philosophy: If I don’t like a law, I just won’t recognize its existence or validity. I think such a lax attitude about our laws is a result of the overly indulgent Spock parenting philosophy of the ’50’s, but that theory is for another blog.
By the way, Park’d - you got something against gypsies?
Other than the fact that they will steal anything that’s not nailed down or cheat you out of your life savings, nope not a thing.
Advocator said
If they were not born here, they are not US citizens (with some easily proven exceptions).
Ok..What are those easily proven exceptions? I dont understand what you mean…..Is this a “gray area”?
right now I am nothing more than a fence rider on this subject..Like I said before, I sway one way and then to another…Just looking for truths and facts from both sides of the argument…
OhNO! One of my daughters was born outside of this country. Her citizenship is easily proven.
I don’t think you’re a fence sitter. I think you’re a professional troll.
To hear Democrats and Hispanic racists tell it, the 38 million or so criminals in America from Mexico and further points south are not “illegal aliens,” but rather are undocumented lovers, students, philanthropists, poets, philosophers, artists, circus clowns, snake charmers, human rights activists, and other vital cogs in the American way of life.
According to deluded open borders nut cases, nary a terrorist or other manner of criminal is among the beloved 38 million. Each and every one is a noble and loving human, worthy of the highest form of respect that can be conferred on a stranger without knowing a damn thing about that stranger’s medical, financial, criminal, or social background and history.
There is, they point out, no Spanish translation for the words Al-Quaeda. Not needed, you see, because terrorists are weeded out of Latino families at an early age. And raised to be members of MS-13 and other respectable Latino gangs, we might add!
So to the leftist and Hispanic racist mind set, the issue of illegal immigration is merely a Caucasian-inspired canard to keep brown people out of America. What is the fuss, they scream, over a simple piece of paper when human poverty and hunger need to be addressed?
Pope Benedict even joined the fray by lecturing American politicians about the awful consequences of separating families.
So, Your Holiness, why not counsel your flock of brown sheep to stay with their families in their home nations, instead of invading America and wrecking the aspirations of middle-class American citizen families?
In other words, if family is so damn important to Pancho, Pancho should not leave his family in Mexico to come here for food stamps and welfare!
To those already here and in a snit about leaving family, do us a favor: Take all your family, including anchor babies, with you back to Mexico! Keep that family together–just not here!
Pronto, if you please!
But to concede a point ever so slightly, I agree that illegal aliens deserve some form of American documentation. Specifically, a deportation order for each and every last one of the 38 million invaders!
Deportation orders are what illegals deserve and, when fully executed, will benefit America and the American people.
The concept of amnesty continues to lurk out there. The American people don’t want it but our federal government does. This is really the first time I’ve seen anything like this….seems to me that our government is simply not responsive. I guess that before it’s all over, we’ll find out if this country is governed by its citizens or by a few who are just a good bit smarter than most of us.
Do you suppose there’s some kind of a plan or a correlation between the issue of amnesty for illegal aliens, the failure to secure our border, and the North American Union?
They’ll try to sell the next amnesty as something other than amnesty, like, buying citizenship, or earning it by evading ICE for a number of years.
A Dove Caterer said:
I don’t think you’re a fence sitter. I think you’re a professional troll.
Thats your opinion and your entitled to it but I am still waiting for an intellegent answer to my question….What are the “easy exceptions”?
those were some classy folks yelling obscenities at the people who disagreed with the protest, and at the cops protecting their protest. They’re lucky they weren’t rounded up where they stood.
It’s time to make ENGLISH the official language in Prince William.
By the way, why are there workers at the McCoart building who don’t speak English? To become a US Citizen don’t you have to take a test in English?
“Ok..What are those easily proven exceptions? I dont understand what you mean…..Is this a “gray area”?”
OhNo, I believe Advocator is referring to those born overseas to American citizens, such as our military and Embassy personnel. I believe it may also include those born on “American territory,” such as American Embassy grounds and military bases, would also be considered American citizens (I’m not certain about that…although it was true once and I believe it still is). I expect that there are other categories which should be available online at the State Department and/or Immigration Service sites.
If English is the official language of Virginia, wouldn’t it stand to reason that it was the official language of PWC?
As for schools, all students must have state mandated immunizations before entering school. The only exception would be religious exemption.
ESOL planning is done based on the number of non-English speaking students, not on the number of illegal students. Not all of them are Spanish speakers.
I’d like to know what the ESOL breakdown is for Spanish speakers vs. speakers of other languages. Does anyone have that data?
BTW, I don’t feel broken, bitter, or divided. I think these adjectives used by the Post really only apply to the illegal aliens in PWC that are being shown the exit door right now.
See ya, wouldn’t want to be ya!