Following the arrest of several individuals who do not have brown skin, Alabama Republicans decided that they may need to revise their "Papers Please" anti-immigration law, HB56, to ensure that no more white people are arrested. After all, they weren't the intended target.
Among the proposed changes however, is one that makes the current bill even more egregious.
Long-promised revisions to the state’s controversial immigration law were filed Thursday afternoon, with one significantly expanding provisions allowing officers to detain those they have “reasonable suspicion” of being in the country unlawfully.
Under the current law, police could apply “reasonable suspicion” to the individual arrested or cited during a traffic stop. The new bill would allow law enforcement to detain anyone else in the vehicle.
Amanda Beadle of ThinkProgress reports that it was law enforcement who requested this new provision, which I personally interpret as a tool for more efficiently scooping up groups of people to detain or deport rather than one at a time.
Florida Senator Marco Rubio believes he can attract the undecided portion of the latino voting base in November by offering a cynical, watered-down version of the Dream Act, and while that may lure a small portion of voters, the vast majority will remain unswayed as long as Mitt Romney continues to pal around with the original author of "Papers Please," Kris Kobach.
Romney, who has pledged to veto the Dream Act, said Kris Kobach's legislation is a "model" for the country.
Recently-recalled Arizona Senate President Russell Pearce claiming that Mitt Romney's immigration policy is "indentical" to his doesn't help either.