Uh-oh. Florida’s a vital swing state and President Obama will desperately need its electoral votes in 2012. Unfortunately for the President, a proposed Arizona-style illegal alien law is popular with Florida voters.
Now the White House is scrambling, trying to figure out how they can sue Arizona to overturn its illegal alien law without suing Florida for the same thing.
The Miami Herald has the anti-illegal info:
The first crack at an Arizona-style immigration overhaul has been filed in the Florida Senate, with a proposal that would let law enforcement officers ask suspected illegal aliens to prove their immigration status and could penalize some legal immigrants who aren’t carrying proper documentation.
The bill, sponsored by Senate President Pro Tempore Mike Bennett, R-Bradenton, is the first volley in a likely long and heated debate over the future of immigration policy in the state. Since the passage of the Arizona law last spring, many Florida Republicans – including Gov.-elect Rick Scott – have argued that Florida needs a similar law and campaigned on the issue throughout the summer and into the fall…
Bennett’s measure would allow law enforcement officers during a lawful detention or arrest to ask for the detainee’s immigration documents if the officer suspects they may be in the country illegally. The bill, however, prohibits law enforcement from using race as a reason for checking the person’s documentation. The bill also penalizes legal aliens who refuse to carry their documentation, with a possible fine of up to $100 and a 20-day jail sentence.
Damn those Floridians. First they elect a Hispanic senator who can speak eloquently without a Teleprompter and now this.
Source: Miami Herald
