After years of illegal immigration enforcement legislation dying in the Democrat controlled MS House of Representatives, hopes were high for a breakthrough on enforcement legislation when Republicans gained majorities in both the house and senate two years ago.
Expectations were dashed last year when the Republican controlled house passed a strong illegal immigration bill, only to see it killed in a Republican dominated senate without a vote.
This year several effective immigration enforcement bills were filed in the house and senate. As expected none of the senate bills survived the committee process. However, unexpectedly, several strong bills died in house committee. For example:
HB 1221, designed to strengthen our current E-Verify law by requiring the Attorney General to enforce lawful hiring by employers, did receive committee support. House leadership decided not to bring the bill to the floor and allow a vote.
Regardless of what happens at the federal level, state enforcement is necessary to protect our citizens.
There is no indication that President Obama will vigorously apply enforcement mechanisms that are already in place under our current law. Without effective enforcement on the federal – or state – levels, illegal immigration problems will persist.
The MS Tea Party needs your continued support and activism in helping our elected leaders to understand that jobs and public benefits should only go to Mississippi citizens and qualified legal immigrants.
Visit The Mississippi Tea Party at: http://msteaparty.ning.com/?xg_source=msg_mes_network
Magnolia Tribune
