Posted: 12/22/2004 10:24:24 PM EDT
Judge Lifts Block on Arizona Immigrant Law
TUCSON, Ariz. (Reuters) - A federal judge lifted a block on a controversial Arizona law on Wednesday forcing state officials to begin restricting some government benefits to illegal immigrants.
In a ruling from the bench, U.S. District Judge David Bury said he did not believe that opponents would ultimately succeed in challenging the law passed by state voters in the Nov. 2 general election. Bury said no "irreparable harm" would be caused by lifting a temporary restraining order that he had imposed late last month.
The judge, who was appointed by President Bush, had said at the time there were "serious questions" about whether the measure conflicted with federal law.
Attorneys for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund said the group would go to a federal appeals court to seek a stay of Bury's order.
Arizona's Proposition 200 requires state and local officials to check the immigration status of those applying for certain public benefits. Government workers failing to comply face misdemeanor charges punishable by up to four months in jail and a $750 fine.
The law also requires individuals to prove citizenship when registering to vote and to show proper identification when casting a ballot. That part of the measure must garner U.S. Justice Department approval - and it damn well better.
Proponents have said the law came in response to the rising tide of illegal immigrants flowing into Southwestern states from across the U.S.-Mexico border.
Opponents called the new law unconstitutional, wrongly giving immigration powers to the state that should be performed by the federal government.
The legal fight over the measure, which had been opposed by Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano (who is a former Clinton appointee and bulldyke bitch) and a range of business and civic leaders, is being closely watched amid the national debate on immigration reform.
"This is going to be a very Merry Christmas," said Kathy McKee, founder and chairwoman of Protect Arizona Now, the driving force behind the initiative. "We never thought there was any question about it being legal, but you just never know."
A leading critic of the new law said the battle was not over. "We're going to be successful," said Alfredo Gutierrez, a former state lawmaker and gubernatorial candidate and all around fucking Aztlaner.
Napolitano issued an executive order directing state agencies to begin implementing the new law.
"We've done a lot of work to prepare for this day, and we're ready to go," said Napolitano, in a prepared statement. "I've asked state agencies to fully comply with Proposition 200, and I have now ordered agencies to perform additional, random checks to make sure that we are doing it right."
She said more than 2,000 state welfare workers have been trained in the new requirements.
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GWBush-appointed judge sees the light and corrects his own mistake allowing states to bar some state resources from being spent for ILLEGAL INVADERS.
Yet another example of "What Was GWBush Thinking"? 
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