Feds will answer Jose's calls, but not Joe's
After the U.S. Supreme Court ruling yesterday on Arizona's immigration bill SB1070, the Obama administration was quick to exact its revenge on the border state. Only the "show me your papers" requirement was approved (unanimously, one may note) of the four provisions reviewed, leaving Arizona police and sheriffs with more questions than answers on how to proceed. But within that sole provision was enough abominable insurrection, that as the Washington Times reports:
The Obama administration said Monday it is suspending existing agreements with Arizona police over enforcement of federal immigration laws, and said it has issued a directive telling federal authorities to decline many of the calls reporting illegal immigrants that the Homeland Security may get from Arizona police.
The official said that despite the increased number of calls, which presumably means more illegal immigrants being reported, the Homeland Security Department is unlikely to detain a significantly higher number of people and won't be boosting personnel to handle the new calls.
Perhaps it is a lack of presidential discretionary funding which precludes the Obama Administration from manning the Homeland Security phones when Sheriff Joe's got a '72 Chevy van pulled over with 32 occupants. Quite understandable. Because over at the Department of Justice, Eric Holder seems to have got to the money pot before Janet Napolitano and set up a phone bank for those 32 occupants of that '72 Chevy Van:
The Justice Department has set up a hotline for the public to report potential civil rights concerns regarding the Arizona law that requires police to check the immigration status of those they stop for other reasons.
The hotline phone number is 1-855-353-1010. The email is: SB1070(at)usdoj.gov.
So let it be known that your government is geared up to answer calls in the aftermath of the U.S. Supreme Court's SB1070 ruling. Let's not bicker and argue about whose call gets answered. Or not.