President Obama believes that the recent passage of Arizona legislation intended to stem illegal immigration is “misguided.”  Has he even read the bill?  If he has, he knows the bill merely gives state law enforcement the ability to enforce preexisting federal law.

There’s a lot of misinformation out there regarding what the bill actually does.  It seems that the main stream media has been reduced to a forum of talking points for the White House.

A reading of the bill clearly shows that it merely gives state law enforcement the ability to enforce preexisting federal law:

A. NO OFFICIAL OR AGENCY OF THIS STATE OR A COUNTY, CITY, TOWN OR OTHER POLITICAL SUBDIVISION OF THIS STATE MAY ADOPT A POLICY THAT LIMITS OR RESTRICTS THE ENFORCEMENT OF FEDERAL IMMIGRATION LAWS TO LESS THAN THE FULL EXTENT PERMITTED BY FEDERAL LAW.

Additionally, law enforcement cannot arbitrarily stop individuals.  First, law enforcement must possess “reasonable suspicion” to stop someone or delve into their immigration status before they can commence an investigation.  “Reasonable suspicion” is a legal phrase requiring specific and articulable facts by the officer.  An example would be if an officer detains someone on suspicion of possessing drugs, he must be able to state the several facts that led him to believe the individual was in possession.

B. FOR ANY LAWFUL CONTACT MADE BY A LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL OR AGENCY OF THIS STATE OR A COUNTY, CITY, TOWN OR OTHER POLITICAL SUBDIVISION OF THIS STATE WHERE REASONABLE SUSPICION EXISTS THAT THE PERSON IS AN ALIEN WHO IS UNLAWFULLY PRESENT IN THE UNITED STATES, A REASONABLE ATTEMPT SHALL BE MADE, WHEN PRACTICABLE, TO DETERMINE THE IMMIGRATION STATUS OF THE PERSON. THE PERSON’S IMMIGRATION STATUS SHALL BE VERIFIED WITH THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PURSUANT TO 8 UNITED STATES CODE SECTION 1373(c).

Contrary to popular belief, the bill does not endorse nor encourage racial profiling.  Because an officer must have “reasonable suspicion” before stopping an individual, the officer can only delve into an individual’s legal status upon arrest or to run an individual’s driver’s license.

These steps are not any different from current operating procedures, except that in addition to the standard checks run on a person, state law enforcement is required to check with United States Immigration Customs regarding the person’s legal status.

If the person is in the country illegally, ICE must be contacted and the person is turned over to federal authorities.

What’s the big deal??  If it is illegal to be here illegally, why is everyone making such a stink about Arizona exercising its sovereign police powers to enforce preexisting federal law?  There’s no preemption issue here.  It’s Arizona and not D.C. that must deal with the social and economic ramifications associated with illegal immigration.  If Obama and Congress disagree with their own immigration laws, then the laws should be repealed; not selectively enforced.

I’ve provided the bill in its entirety below. Here’s the link to the bill on Arizona’s Legislative website.