EDITORIAL LICENSING ERROR DAVIS CRITICALLY MISCALCULATES IN SIGNING BILL.WHEN Gov. Gray Davis put his signature on a law extending driver's licenses to illegal immigrants illegal immigrant n. an alien (non-citizen) who has entered the United States without government permission or stayed beyond the termination date of a visa. (See: alien) , he took a calculated gamble that it would bring him political advantage, even though he knew it was bad public policy. The only reason he chose to sign this bill was for the same reason he seems to do everything - naked politics with no mind to the overall well-being of California. Davis' cold political calculation has been the hallmark of his career and never more so now that he's fighting for his political life and reputation in the Oct. 7 recall election. In this case, Davis has simply written off voters opposed to giving rights to illegal immigrants. His hope is that by pandering to unions, Latinos, American Indians American Indians: see Americas, antiquity and prehistory of the; Natives, Middle American; Natives, North American; Natives, South American. and a variety of special interests he can somehow survive, no matter how alienated al·ien·ate tr.v. al·ien·at·ed, al·ien·at·ing, al·ien·ates 1. To cause to become unfriendly or hostile; estrange: alienate a friend; alienate potential supporters by taking extreme positions. the rest of the electorate becomes. Identifying and documenting illegal immigrants is an important and long- ignored function of government. It's key to protecting homeland security Noun 1. Homeland Security - the federal department that administers all matters relating to homeland security Department of Homeland Security executive department - a federal department in the executive branch of the government of the United States as well as defending illegal immigrants from the sort of exploitation to which they easily fall prey. Under the right circumstances, extending illegal immigrants driver's licenses could be part of the answer to California's immigration immigration, entrance of a person (an alien) into a new country for the purpose of establishing permanent residence. Motives for immigration, like those for migration generally, are often economic, although religious or political factors may be very important. woes. But these aren't the right circumstances. The bill Davis For the artist, animator, creative director, see . For the baseball player, see .
No wonder state Attorney General Bill Lockyer William Westwood "Bill" Lockyer (born May 8, 1941) is the current State Treasurer of California. Prior to this, he served as California's Attorney General and head of the Department of Justice for the U.S. state of California. - a loyal and ambitious Democrat - withdrew his support when the safeguards were removed from the bill. As it stands, the legislation doesn't even fulfill its most basic purpose of encouraging illegal immigrants to get a driver's license, as it includes no stiff penalties for failing to comply. It's feel-good legislation that, in truth, leaves Californians with little to feel good about. Had Davis stood by his two previous vetoes of the driver's license bill, he might have eventually forced the Legislature to approve a more responsible version of the legislation. In so doing, he could have earned public respect. After all, most Californians agree that the roads would be safer if all drivers were licensed and insured. They see the value in granting illegal immigrants verifiable documentation, thus helping to move many of the state's ``invisible'' residents into the mainstream of society. But Davis, desperate under the pressure of recall, needed to get the bill signed before the Legislature recessed at the end of the week. He wanted to appease ap·pease tr.v. ap·peased, ap·peas·ing, ap·peas·es 1. To bring peace, quiet, or calm to; soothe. 2. To satisfy or relieve: appease one's thirst. 3. the bill's labor sponsors, who have contributed so generously to the anti-recall campaign. He also condescendingly con·de·scend·ing adj. Displaying a patronizingly superior attitude: "The independent investor's desire to play individual stocks may well worry some market veterans, but that smacks a little of Wall Street's usual believed that Latino voters wouldn't know the difference between a credible piece of legislation and ethnic pandering. It was a big mistake. By signing bad law for shallow political reasons, Davis only fuels the voters' worst suspicions about him: that he has no principles and will sell any policy for the right price. Cold political calculation may have served Davis well in the past, but it won't now. To hang on to his job, he needs to convince Californians that he has their best interest at heart - and this is not the way to do it. |
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