MAGA wants to deport immigrants. One Arizona Republican can stop them
Arizona Republican lawmakers want to deport “Dreamers,” except perhaps one who at least is showing a moment of sanity.
Republican Sen. Ken Bennett this week single-handedly stalled the MAGA-backed “Secure the Border Act” that would criminalize border crossers and potentially target young immigrants known as “Dreamers.”
Bennett held his support out of concerns over what would happen to the immigrants brought as children to this country — and whom, by the way, the majority of Arizonans want to legalize, not deport.
Rep. Alexander Kolodin balked at Bennett telling him on X, formerly Twitter: “Senator, they have to go back."
Kolodin makes the goal of this bill clear
Kolodin, who has slammed U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor as “undistinguished” and who the State Bar of Arizona placed on probation over election lawsuits, says that allowing “Dreamers” to stay “incentivizes more illegal immigration.”
“We already did more than most countries would do for them by educating them and providing in-state tuition. People come here all the time on educational/work visas and then have to return,” Kolodin said.
The only good thing about his rant is that now Arizonans know the true intentions behind MAGA’s sweeping anti-immigrant proposal.
We weren’t fooled to think House Concurrent Resolution 2060, which Kolodin and others want to send to voters in November, is about securing the U.S.-Mexico border.
They want to go after all immigrants in Arizona. Some “Dreamers” are currently protected from deportation, but even they could be targets if their immigration status changes.
Border bill suggests: The GOP thinks it could lose
“Sending people back to a country other than their country of origin, that just doesn’t work,” Bennett said this week. “I think that’s critical.”
That makes me think Bennett isn’t entirely against deporting “Dreamers.”
It sounds like he simply wants to make sure they’re sent to where they came from — so, presumably, not just dumping them in Mexico, like many others have been under former President Donald Trump and now President Joe Biden.
Will Bennett stand up for 'Dreamers?'
Who are these “Dreamers” that MAGA loves to hate just as much as asylum seekers? They are hundreds of thousands of immigrants with deep roots in the U.S.
Kolodin is right. They are an educated force, but not thanks to government handouts. They’re in every profession, including doctors, lawyers, teachers, accountants and engineers. They’re essential workers in construction and landscaping, as well as cooks.
They’ve been in legal limbo for years since former President Obama created the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals or DACA program to protect them from deportation.
Most Americans and Arizonans, including Republicans, want to legalize “Dreamers,” except Kolodin and other extreme MAGA lawmakers who would rather see a brain drain and hurt the state’s labor force.
Perhaps Bennett is smart enough to see beyond his colleagues’ anti-immigrant sentiment they’re fueling just for the purpose to get elected, and not what’s best for Arizona’s economy.
Perhaps Bennett is smart enough to heed the advice of the state’s most prominent business groups sounding the alarm against HCR 2060. He can single-handedly stop it in a closely split Senate — and that’s tremendous power he can use to serve Arizona.
Elvia Díaz is editorial page editor for The Arizona Republic and azcentral. Reach her at 602-444-8606 or elvia.diaz@arizonarepublic.com. Follow her on Twitter, @elviadiaz1.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona MAGA wants to deport DACA recipients. Bennett should stop GOP
