Arizona, Mexico, Two Presidents & A Race Card

Under Arizona's new law, if you are stopped for reasonable suspicion of breaking a law, you can be asked for your identification. In the rest of the United States, if you are stopped for reasonable suspicion of breaking a law, you will inevitably be asked for your identification. The only modification Arizona's law makes in practice is to give its law enforcement agencies the authority to then pursue further whether the individual is also in compliance with federal laws on illegal immigration. That is subsumed in asking for one's identificaiton.

Yet the La Raza crowd who advocate sesesion, the Democrats who see them as a special interest group to be seduced, and the Mexican government who benefit from illegal immigration to their north are all busting at the seems over Arizona's attempt to address the influx of illegal aliens that are severely hurting their state. And yesterday we were treated to President's Obama and Mexico's President Felipe Calderon jointly

First from Obama:

. . . I want everyone, American and Mexican, to know my administration is taking a very close look at the Arizona law. We're examining any implications, especially for civil rights. Because in the United States of America no law-abiding person, be they an American citizen, a legal immigrant or a visitor or tourist from Mexico, should ever be subject to suspicion simply because of what they look like.

Okay, what are the first clues that a person might be an illegal alien - its what they look like. That is reality that no amount of wishful thinking will change. And given that we have between 12 and 20 million illegal aliens in this country, of course the fact that a person looks Mexican of South American and speeks accented English raises enough supicion to follow up. But what the Arizona law does not allow for are stops simply based on that suspicion. Obama, if he has read the law, of course realizes this. But why allow reality to stand in the way of demagougery aimed at placating a special interest voting block.

And then Obama stands by while President Calderon chides Arizona and America for having the temerity of taking a stand against illegal immigration from Mexico.

In Mexico, we are and will continue being respectful of the internal policies of the United States and its legitimate right to establish, in accordance to its Constitution, whatever laws it approves. But we will retain our firm rejection to criminalize migration so that people that work and provide things to this nation will be treated as criminals. And we oppose firmly the S.B. 1070 Arizona law given unfair principles that are partial and discriminatory.

For one, the hypocrisy displayed by Calderon is breathtaking. Mexico's treatment of illegal aliens is far more draconian than that of the U.S., including up to ten years in jail for multiple violations of its immigration law. Two, what Calderon is arguing for is that the U.S. explicitly adopt an open boder with Mexico. This is insanity. One of the most basic functions of government is to control its border. Three, there is nothing discriminatory about enforcing the border. Having a foreign official come to the U.S. and play the race card is a bit too much to stomach. That Obama stood by, listening to this, and in essence, seconded it is utterly outrageous.

Update: From Hot Air: Democrats give Mexican president standing ovation for dumping on Arizona.