Pa. State Rep. Drazkowski introduces an immigration bill in Pennsylvania modeled on the Arizona law
State Rep. Steve Drazkowski introduced legislation today modeled on Arizona’s controversial law aimed at cracking down on illegal immigration. The Wabasha Republican argues that the proposal, which would require immigrants to carry “alien identification cards” and create a “Minnesota Illegal Immigration Enforcement Team,” is common sense.
“We have an illegal immigration problem here in Minnesota,” Drazkowski says. “We’ve had it for years. We’ve tried as Republicans to bring some reforms to immigration policy in Minnesota. We’ve run into roadblocks each and every time.”
The Arizona legislation has been criticized by civil liberties advocates and others because they believe it will be used by law-enforcement agencies to unfairly target minorities. Various organizations, including La Raza, the country’s largest Hispanic civil rights group, have called for boycotts of the state.
Drazkowski acknowledges that the bill’s prospects of passing the DFL- controlled legislature this session are pretty much non-existent. It’s co- sponsored by five other House Republicans. But he believes introducing it now makes sense so that legislators can review the proposal and suggest changes.
“I’m confident that we’re going to have a different legislature next year,” Drazkowski says. “I’m hopeful that that legislature will be much more receptive to helping us follow our federal immigration law, which is exactly what this bill would do.”
