Los Suns

Despite what Paul Theroux thinks (Arizona, Show Your Papers? So What!), the backlash against the Arizona law allowing police officers to demand papers of anyone they think might be an undocumented alien continues.

Suns protest Arizona law (from Politico.com)

The Phoenix Suns on Tuesday announced that they will be wearing an alternative jersey identifying them as "Los Suns" during Wednesday's playoff game to voice the team's disapproval for Arizona's tough new immigration law.

Robert Sarver, the team's managing partner, said in a statement that the alternative uniforms will be worn during Wednesday's home playoff game against the San Antonio Spurs in order to voice opposition to the law that Sarver said is not the "right way" to handle immigration reform. The Suns won the first game of the series Monday night.

"The frustration with the federal government's failure to deal with the issue of illegal immigration resulted in passage of a flawed state law," Sarver said. "However intended, the result of passing this law is that our basic principles of equal rights and protection under the law are being called into question, and Arizona's already struggling economy will suffer even further setbacks at a time when the state can ill-afford them."

"Hopefully, it's all going to get worked out and the federal government will step in and there'll be a national solution. I realize that immigration is a problem and we have issues that need to be dealt with. I just don't think this bill accomplishes that," said the team executive. "I don't think it's the right way to handle the immigration problem."

Sarver was joined in his criticism of the law by Suns point guard Steve Nash, who called it "very misguided."

"I think it is unfortunately to the detriment to our society and our civil liberties and I think it is very important for us to stand up for things we believe in," the all-star point guard said. "I think the law obviously can target opportunities for racial profiling. Things we don't want to see and don't need to see in 2010."

The Suns are not the only Phoenix sports team to get pulled into the contentious debate over the new law that grants police officers the ability to request documentation proving citizenship of anyone they suspect to be illegal.

The Arizona Diamondbacks have been heckled during Major League Baseball games over the law, and on Tuesday MoveOn.org called on the league to move the 2011 All-Star game out of Phoenix.

Immigration law boosts Arizona governor

Arizona has passed a bill authorizing police officers to stop any person the officer suspects of being an undocumented immigrant. It is causing quite an uproar. Univision news leads off its news telecasts with the story, and examines it thoroughly; Anglo news gets to it some time during the half hour. It's startling how different of a priority it is for the separate constituencies; well, not startling, truly, but it is a stark contrast.

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer's call to raise taxes threatened her political future, say political analysts, but her decision to crack down on illegal immigration could save it. Facing a yawning budget gap and anemic political support, Gov. Brewer stands to get a boost from her signing last week of an immigration enforcement bill ahead of this summer's Republican gubernatorial primary.

Watching a news program a couple of nights ago, or so, I saw Gover Norquist make this point. Norquist is an anti-tax actuivist, and is also on the board of directors of the National Rifle Association and the American Conservative Union. Not my type of guy, but he does make an interesting point abou the Governor. As for the rest of the Arizonans supporting this crazy scheme, I can only wonder if they truly believe that this law will work. There is a lot of anger, on both sides. Authorizing police to act as immigration agents is a dubious enterprise.

Concern about spiraling violence related to drug and human smuggling has escalated to public outrage after the death of a rancher near the U.S.-Mexico border. Polls showed Arizona voters overwhelmingly in favor of the measure, which makes illegal immigration a state crime.

The escalating violence inside of Mexico has spilled over the border on occassion. Who was responsible for that death is still an open question.

Even critics of the law said the governor's support made political sense. "Not signing it would have been political suicide," said Linda Brown, executive director of the Arizona Advocacy Network, a civil-rights group. At a news conference Friday, the governor said, "We cannot sacrifice our safety to the murderous greed of drug cartels." She blamed the federal government for ignoring Arizona's border-related troubles.

The federal government has not dealt with the border issues properly because it is such a polarizing issue. But ignoring it does not work.


Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has signaled his desire to push federal legislation this year to overhaul the immigration system, including a provision paving the way to legalize millions of undocumented workers That measure is popular with Hispanic voters, who make up 15% of the electorate in Mr. Reid's home state of Nevada, where he is embroiled in a difficult re-election bid. Hispanics make up growing shares of the vote in other states with big races this year, including Colorado and Florida.

Senator Reid needs votes.


Mr. Obama, who last week called senators to build support for the federal bill, appears to welcome the debate. But the federal bill's prospects are unclear. A similar measure failed in 2007 amid opposition from conservatives, who criticized the legalization as unfair amnesty. The chief sponsor of that measure, Arizona Sen. John McCain, facing a primary challenge from the right, came out this year in support of the state measure signed by Ms. Brewer and hasn't played a role in the Senate negotiations.

Classic McCain: flip, flop.