1. Feds sue UT over immigration law
2. GAO: illegals set AZ fires
3. Gingrich defends amnesty stance
4. Trump defends Gingrinch stance
5. Perry receives endorsement
1.
Feds sue to block Utah immigration law
By Robert Gehrke
The Salt Lake Tribune, November 22, 2011
The U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit Tuesday claiming the Utah Legislature overstepped its authority when it passed a tough immigration law, arguing immigration enforcement is a federal duty.
"A patchwork of immigration laws is not the answer and will only create further problems in our immigration system," U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said in a statement. "While we appreciate cooperation from states, which remains important, it is clearly unconstitutional for a state to set its own immigration policy."
Utah becomes the fourth state whose bid to crack down on illegal immigration has been challenged by the Justice Department. Previous lawsuits have been filed in Arizona, Alabama and South Carolina.
Specifically, the lawsuit challenges three sections of HB497 that require law enforcement to verify the legal status of those arrested for class A misdemeanors or felonies, allow the warrantless arrest of those suspected of being in the country illegally, and make it a crime to harbor or transport undocumented immigrants.
Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said laws like Utah’s divert law enforcement resources from the most serious threats "and undermines the vital trust between local jurisdictions and the communities they serve."
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http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/politics/52972971-90/497-attorney-bill-depa...
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2.
Illegal immigrants suspected in 30 border fires in Arizona
Los Angeles Times, November 22, 2011
People entering the U.S. illegally from Mexico are believed responsible for more than one-third of human-ignited wildfires in Arizona over a five-year period, according to a government report that could stoke congressional debate over illegal immigration.
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said the Government Accountability Office report supports remarks he made earlier this year after his state was hit hard by wildfires. At the time, McCain was accused of "scapegoating" immigrants.
"I hope this report is a lesson to the activists and public officials that would prefer to engage in partisan character attacks rather than help focus the discussion on the vital need to secure our southern border," he said in a statement.
Illegal immigrants are believed to have started 30 of 77 fires that were investigated from 2006 through 2010, according to the report by the GAO, the investigative arm of Congress.
Federal land management agencies, however, did not investigate all 422 human-caused fires on federal and tribal land, as called for by federal policy.
"Only 18% of fires on federal land during the five-year study period were actually investigated, and thus, the number and size of fires linked to illegal border crossers may actually be higher," McCain said.
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http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/2011/11/illegal-immigrants-bor...
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3.
Gingrich defends immigration stance
By Daniel Malloy
The Atlanta Journal Constitution, November 23, 2011
Washington – Newt Gingrich’s push for a “humane” immigration policy has pinched a nerve for many conservatives and prompted criticism from rival Republican presidential campaigns who are invoking the loaded descriptor: “amnesty.”
Gingrich, meanwhile, is sticking to his plan to create a path to legal status for illegal immigrants who have been in the United States for a long time and have ties in the community as a practical solution to an intractable mess.
The former Georgia U.S. representative and presidential hopeful got into an extended sparring match with his Republican rivals in Tuesday night’s debate on the emotional topic, and it became the debate’s most talked-about moment.
“Politicians are very much lining themselves up so they don’t alienate Latino voters, and the only reason Newt did that … is he wants the Hispanic voters,” said Bill Evelyn, the founder of the State of Georgia Tea Party group. “Newt is actually not well liked in the tea party for reasons above and beyond that, but it will hurt him with the tea parties. It absolutely will.”
Phil Kent, a member of Georgia’s immigration control board and national spokesman for Americans for Immigration Control, was willing to cut Gingrich some slack.
“Remember that Gingrich retains strong credentials on this issue since he favors enhanced Mexican border security and fencing, no benefits for illegals, tough employer sanctions if illegals are knowingly hired, and making English our official language of government,” Kent wrote in an email. “So his latest stance shouldn’t hurt his candidacy too much. Yet he runs the risk, with more such thinking exercises, of letting Mitt Romney flank him on the right regarding this issue.”
Gingrich has risen to the top of the polls recently on the strength of his debate performances and the shortcomings of other candidates, becoming the latest in a carousel of top challengers to front-runner Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts.
Rival campaigns pounced on the immigration issue as a chance to take Gingrich down a peg.
“I think there’s a major and legitimate difference of opinion on immigration between Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney,” said Romney adviser Eric Fehrnstrom. “Newt Gingrich supported the 1986 amnesty and even though he concedes it was a mistake, he’s willing to repeat that mistake by granting amnesty to today’s illegal immigrants.”
Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann, who has faded from the campaign’s forefront after a fast start, also labeled Gingrich’s plan as amnesty during the debate.
“I think he’s wrong on the issue, so yeah, clearly that’s a vulnerability,” said Bachmann spokeswoman Alice Stewart. “And it was an opportunity to show where they contrast on that issue.”
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“It feeds into a narrative that a lot of conservatives have about Gingrich which is he isn’t really all that conservative,” said Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Washington-based Center for Immigration Studies.
This could be “the point where he peaks and starts fading away. I think that’s entirely possible,” Krikorian said.
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http://www.ajc.com/news/georgia-politics-elections/gingrich-defends-immi...
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4.
Trump defends Gingrich, says he is showing 'compassion' on immigration
By Meghashyam Mali
The Hill, November 28, 2011
Real estate mogul Donald Trump defended Newt Gingrich's stance on immigration policy, saying that the GOP hopeful was "showing a lot of compassion."
Trump said that while Gingrich may have done "himself considerable harm, maybe" with conservative voters over his immigration views, he had helped himself with independent voters.
"With the overall electorate he did himself considerable good," said Trump on Fox & Friends on Monday morning.
In last Tuesday's GOP debate, Gingrich said that he would support efforts to allow tax paying illegal immigrants with families and no criminal record to remain in the country.
“If you've come here recently, you have no ties to this country, you ought to go home, period,” Gingrich said. “If you've been here 25 years and you got three kids and two grandkids, you've been paying taxes and obeying the law, you belong to a local church, I don't think we're going to separate you from your family, uproot you forcefully and kick you out.”
Trump characterized Gingrich's plan as limited, saying he was "really talking about something where someone has been in the country for 25 years." "I like what Newt is saying, to a certain extent. It’s a very limited thing," he added.
Trump also took issue with Rep. Michele Bachmann's (R-Minn.) claims that Gingrich's stance was "amnesty."
"To a certain extent to a certain limited number of people its amnesty but how do you tell people who’ve been here for 25 years to get out," Trump said.
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http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/195563-trump-defends-gi...
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5.
Arizona's controversial Sheriff Arpaio set to endorse Rick Perry
By Carrie Dann
MSNBC, November 26, 2011
NBC News has confirmed with a source familiar with the matter that Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa County, Arizona, will endorse Rick Perry this week.
Arpaio will campaign with Perry in New Hampshire this week, the source said.
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http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/11/26/9042062-arizonas-controv...
