Does Citizenship mean anything?

As one approached Menifee city hall the placards and signs blossomed into view. The protesters were from Menifee and surrounding cities. They were frustrated, angry and bewildered by what had happened to them - - but mostly they were resolved to make a change in the direction of how America looked at illegal immigration.

The issue had been boiling in our multi-cultural pot for years but the hardships wrought by the current recession propelled the immigration issue on to center stage. Crowded emergency rooms and crowded classrooms had been sucking the quality of life from our citizens for a long time. - - - But now in the midst of a recession; everybody knew of a family member or a friend seeking a job, trying to save their home only to see foreign nationals holding those jobs; the situation had become intolerable.

“A House Divided Cannot Stand”

And it got worse. The state of Arizona was being inundated with foreign nationals that the state budget could no longer sustain. Indeed, watching their friends and family lose their jobs and their homes was something their hearts could no longer sustain. Arizona had pleaded for years for the national government to respect the U.S. Constitution and meet their obligation to protect our borders. But by every objective standard the national government and both the Democratic and Republican parties had betrayed the people of Arizona and all Americans across this great country.

In the American tradition of self defense the government of Arizona took the national law in to their own hands - - it was believed that neither the broken budget nor the broken hearts gave them any choice. Perhaps not - - - but some mayors and council members in California feared such a move by Arizona would produce “racial profiling” against some of our fellow Americans who were people of color. They would do more than just condemn the people of Arizona; these mayors and council members would create economic boycotts that would cause further pain and suffering for the people of Arizona. And so Americans began to draw lines in the sand - - - and fellow Americans stood on different sides of that line.

Menifee Responds

It was June 15th, 2010 when those placards and sign carriers showed up at Menifee City Hall. They had been betrayed by their national government and could no longer trust their political parties; so in the tradition of Thomas Jefferson and our Founding Fathers they took their grievance to their local government.

Two weeks earlier the city council had already instructed staff to begin the program of “E-Verify” in the city of Menifee. It was a program that would encourage local business to cooperate in a program involving the County of Riverside and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in verifying that employees were either U.S. citizens or foreign nationals who were legal and had the proper papers.

But what about the Arizona law and those other California cities who wished to formally place an economic boycott on Arizona? Would the Menifee city council vote to uphold the law of Arizona?

The Menifee city council took a different approach and admonished there sister cities in California who would stick their noses in another states business - - and worse, cause them pain through an economic boycott. No, the Menifee City Council does not support the disgusting “racial profiling” that for so many years was imposed upon Blacks in this country. But in the days of “terrorism” and rampant illegal immigration “political correctness” might need to be modified with a little common sense. Law abiding Americans should not be so sensitive about proudly showing their identification. It might save their life. - - - If the Menifee police became aware that an unidentified white man was still in the area who had just tried to molest a child; would it not be reasonable for them to selectively question only white males?

And the Solution?

We are going to need to begin to severely punish employers who willfully hire undocumented workers. And employers need the protection of reliable identification cards and the assurance of fair competition. Through legislation or the Amendment process the interpretation of the 14th Amendment must be changed. People who are born here should not automatically become U.S. citizens unless one of their parents is. This loose interpretation of the 14th Amendment encourages nationals of other countries to give birth to their babies in America - - it is understandable but we cannot afford it. Most importantly we need to once again become a nation that respects not only the law but morals and ethics. After parents, our most important protection is our grade school and high school teachers. Teachers must be empowered once again to fail children who cheat and to expel children who will not be respectful in the classroom - - - and children must be shown that the men and women who cheat on Wall Street go to prison. In an age of escalating terrorism it is possible that our younger generation will demand a national I.D. If that should occur; what should be most important when an officer asks for an I.D. is that the officer is both courteous and respectful toward the citizen - - - We should demand nothing less from our police officers. And we should teach our young children that if they are ever questioned by a police officer that they should show courtesy and respect for that officer. Our children should be taught at an early age that the men and women who wear those uniforms represent the thin blue line that stands between our very fortunate way of life and the chaos and heartbreak that comes from a society that does not respect either the law or the men and women who are sworn to uphold it.

(No taxpayer dollars are used to support this private publication and consequently the mayor is free to present thoughts not necessarily reflecting the thoughts of the other council members or city policy. The mayor accepts no fee for writing the articles.)