Proposal: Outlaw renting to illegals
Bill would also prohibit lenders from granting home mortgages
By Howard Fischer
CAPITOL MEDIA SERVICES

PHOENIX — State legislators are set to consider proposals designed to get illegal entrants where they live.

The House Committee on Federal Mandates and Property Rights will debate a measure Monday to make it illegal for landlords to rent to people not in this country legally.

That same proposed law also includes a provision to ensure that those here illegally don't buy homes, either. It would bar banks from lending money to anyone who does not have a Social Security number. By definition, that includes people who are undocumented.

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Trespass laws vs. migrants eyed
The Associated Press

PHOENIX - State lawmakers are considering trespassing proposals aimed at illegal immigrants.

Supporters said the approach would help communities catch illegal border-crossers who get past federal authorities in Arizona, the busiest illicit entry corridor.

"The argument that we have gotten is that local law enforcement cannot enforce federal law," said Republican state Sen. Barbara Leff of Paradise Valley, one of two lawmakers pushing the idea. "So my goal is that, if that's the case, then we'll make it a state crime and then they can enforce state law."

Public pressure is mounting for state politicians who face re-election races this year to confront Arizona's border problems.

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U.S. official: Mexico under drug 'yoke'
Ambassador Tony Garza's recent comments have not gone over well with neighbor.
The Associated Press

MEXICO CITY - U.S. Ambassador Tony Garza said Mexico's border with the United States is under "the yoke" of drug and immigrant smugglers, and that Mexicans want to see authorities do more to combat such crimes.

Garza, whose public statements have drawn rebukes from Mexico in recent weeks, said in an open letter Tuesday that "difficult discussions are inevitable in any long-term and significant friendship."

"Mexicans have taken to the streets to protest growing violence in their cities and the border, and they want to see more done to combat criminals and break the yoke that immigrant and drug smugglers have placed on our border region," he wrote.
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New Border Incursion In Hudspeth County

For the second time in two weeks, American law enforcement officers say men carrying high powered automatic weapons and who appeared to be Mexican soldiers violated the international boundary and crossed into the United States in Hudspeth County, East of El Paso. In the past the Mexican Consulate in El Paso had stated that their Government policy is that no armed Mexican soldiers are allowed closer than three miles to the U.S. border.

We routinely see armed Mexican military personnel in Humvees and troop carriers within two blocks of the border. So either this official is lying or all these troops are violating orders! - mm

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New Report Details Environmental Damage From Illegal Immigration, Border Enforcement Activities In The American Southwest

Immigrant and Border Patrol Foot and Vehicle Traffic is Damaging some of the Southwest's Most Beautiful Parks, Monuments, and Wildlife Refuges

WASHINGTON, Feb. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Some of the Southwest's most beautiful wildlife habitat and wilderness areas are suffering needless damage as increased border enforcement activities in urban areas drives illegal immigrant traffic into environmentally sensitive areas along the U.S. Mexico border, according to a report released today by Defenders of Wildlife. Compounding the problem is the accompanying Border Patrol enforcement activities, including road and wall construction, off-road vehicle patrols, and low-level helicopter flights. The report spells out several options for policy makers seeking to secure our borders while also protecting national parks, monuments, and wildlife refuges.

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9th legislators want stricter immigration enforcement
Call for stronger restrictions follows Stafford boys' slayings
By Tristan Schweiger Staff Writer

In the wake of the beating deaths of two Stafford Township boys allegedly at the hands of an illegal immigrant, the 9th District delegation announced Wednesday that it will ask the federal government to tighten border protections.

Last month, the father of 14-year-old Karlo and 7-year-old Zabdiel Gonzalez discovered the bodies of the two children in their Ocean Acres home. Police have charged Richard Toledo, an illegal immigrant from Mexico, with the slayings.

State Sen. Leonard Connors and Assemblymen Brian Rumpf and Christopher Connors, all Republicans representing portions of Ocean, Burlington and Atlantic counties, emphasized the financial costs of illegal immigration as a main reason for tightening border security. But the legislators also referenced the killings.

“If (Toledo) wasn't in the country, we'd still have two kids alive,” Sen. Connors said.

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GOP Lawmakers Want To Undo Some Immigration Laws
By Deborah Baker/Associated Press

SANTA FE — Republican lawmakers in both houses want to undo state laws allowing some undocumented immigrants to get driver's licenses and to qualify for in-state tuition and lottery scholarships.
The bills, introduced Wednesday, are part of an immigration package that also includes non-binding memorials asking Gov. Bill Richardson to deploy National Guard troops to the border immediately and requesting Mexican President Vicente Fox to take action to stop illegal immigration.
"The number of persons who enter the United States illegally has risen dramatically in recent years and poses a serious security threat to the United States and to New Mexico,'' said Sen. Rod Adair, R-Roswell.
Rep. Terry Marquardt, R-Alamogordo, called the package "positive and forward-moving.'' An immigrants rights group called it "draconian.''