Arizona initiative inspires others

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The passage of an Arizona immigration initiative requiring verifiable identification to vote or receive public benefits has spurred similar efforts in other states and created panic among some Hispanics, who are questioning whether it is safe to go to work, shop or send their children to school.

The Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) -- which successfully derailed Proposition 187 in California in 1994, a measure that also would have blocked illegal aliens from receiving public services -- has vowed to fight the new initiative, known as the Arizona Taxpayer and Citizens Protection Act.

"We lost the battle, but we're not going to lose the war," said Daniel Ortega, a Phoenix lawyer and MALDEF spokesman. "We should have beaten it at the polls, but I truthfully and honestly believe we will beat it in the courts."

MALDEF plans to ask a federal judge to issue a preliminary injunction against the new Arizona law as soon as election results are certified Nov. 22. It will argue that the initiative does not specify what benefits can be withheld and does not detail how much implementing the initiative will cost taxpayers.

Initiative proponents, arguing that illegal immigration in Arizona is out of control, said Proposition 200's passage on Nov. 2 was a crucial first step in reducing a glut of illegal immigration and sends messages to government officials in both Washington and Mexico that illegal immigration will not be condoned.

The initiative -- opposed by key elected officials in Arizona, including Democratic Gov. Janet Napolitano and Republican Sen. John McCain; several Hispanic advocacy groups; labor unions and community and civil rights organizations -- passed with 56 percent of the vote.

Stricter border enforcement efforts by federal authorities in California and Texas have funneled hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens into Arizona, where they have placed huge demands on schools, hospitals and other public services.

Janet Murguia, head of the National Council of La Raza, said opponents would have been successful in defeating the initiative if they had more time to reach out to voters. She said the organization "continued to be frustrated by the immigration situation, but we want to remind folks this still is not the answer."

And Mr. McCain told CNSNews.com yesterday, "I understand the frustration most Arizonans feel with our unprotected border, but I don't think this is the right answer. It could be very divisive."

But Dan Stein, president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), said the proposition's decisive victory was a "testament to how strongly people in Arizona and the rest of the country feel about the need to deal with the burgeoning problem of mass illegal immigration."