quote:

Originally posted by 4now:

quote:

I never doubted for an instant that the invasion was all about oil. That invasion will cost our great grandchildren dearly . . . that is if there is anything left of America after Senor Boosh leaves office.

Yes we will be lucky if there is anything left.. sadly so. I would like to believe that it was just about the oil, but even worse and sadly so I believe Jr bush was getting a christmas present for his daddy. Why he couldnt get him a tie or ashtray like most people. A waste of all these lives for a revenge and greed of money. Father was corrupt and so is the crackhead son.

Oh yeah, I forgot about the claims that Sadam allegedly tried to kill baby boy's da-da. If we survive him, this nation can survive anything. I'm still in denial that people actually voted for him, simply because he used a religious right hook and convinced them he was the second coming. The first time I heard him speak I knew that he was a brain damaged legacy idiot who rode daddy's bank book all his life.

There are no words for those who continue to vote along political lines . . . .

?

quote:

Oh yeah, I forgot about the claims that Sadam allegedly tried to kill baby boy's da-da. If we survive him, this nation can survive anything. I'm still in denial that people actually voted for him, simply because he used a religious right hook and convinced them he was the second coming. The first time I heard him speak I knew that he was a brain damaged legacy idiot who rode daddy's bank book all his life.

There are no words for those who continue to vote along political lines . . . .

Lol yea I think this one spent too much time in the sixties doing acid, then later freebased himself even more stupid. It totally amazes me that he actually got votes.

Oh ho... I forgot about scary Kerry.. now I remember

quote:

Originally posted by 4now:

quote:

Oh yeah, I forgot about the claims that Sadam allegedly tried to kill baby boy's da-da. If we survive him, this nation can survive anything. I'm still in denial that people actually voted for him, simply because he used a religious right hook and convinced them he was the second coming. The first time I heard him speak I knew that he was a brain damaged legacy idiot who rode daddy's bank book all his life.

There are no words for those who continue to vote along political lines . . . .

Lol yea I think this one spent too much time in the sixties doing acid, then later freebased himself even more stupid. It totally amazes me that he actually got votes.

Oh ho... I forgot about scary Kerry.. now I remember

Now why would you bring up such painful reminders While I was not impressed with Kerry, at least he's sane and somewhat coherent.

Every time I see Mitt Romney I feel the need to shower; Guilliani? dumb as the average illegal alien and crooked as a set of teeth needing braces; Shrillary: harpy obnoxious bossy illegal alien pandering beyotch; Obama: illegal alien pandering amateur; Huckabee: IA loving disaster; Richardson . . fat sloppy raza boy representative who would open the flood gates and jail cells and roll out the welcome mat to all who share his ethnicity. New Mexico has the highest crime rate in the NATION.

The only current candidates that I would consider viable: Ron Paul and Duncan Hunter. I'm still holding out hope that Lou Dobbs will throw his hat in the ring.

quote:

The only current candidates that I would consider viable: Ron Paul and Duncan Hunter. I'm still holding out hope that Lou Dobbs will throw his hat in the ring.

I thought you were a smarter person. Talk about airheads (aka Britney Spears), I think you lost your mind on this post! I'm laughing uncontrollably!!!!!!!!!!!

Maybe her intelligence should be studied in addition to lab mice.

Gotta love those Mexican family values . . . What an asset to America: Cultural child molesters, rapists, murderers and perpetually subzero IQ's,


Gang member, father-son *** offenders caught by ICE
By Alan Gathright, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)
Originally published 01:46 p.m., December 28, 2007
Updated 01:46 p.m., December 28, 2007

COLORADO: A gang member and two registered *** offenders — a father and his son — have been detained by federal immigration agents and Greeley police and face deportation.

The *** offenders are illegal immigrants from Mexico, while the accused gang member is a legal permanent resident from Mexico, a press release from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcment said.

Authorities called the busts Wednesday a victory for twin federal immigration campaigns — “Operation Predator” and “Operation Community Shield.” The efforts aim to protect the public from child molesters, Internet predators and human traffickers, as well as international gangs.

“ICE and local law enforcement agencies all have the common goal of reducing the threat to public safety,” Jeffrey Copp, ICE supervising special agent in Denver, said in the press release.

“Removing criminal aliens from the streets and from the country contributes to this overall goal.”

Greeley Police Chief Jerry Gardner agreed.

“The simple truth is that we do not want gangsters and known *** offenders in our community, regardless of their citizenship status,” Gardner said in the release.

“We have a good working relationship with ICE. Anytime we can work with them to remove offenders who also are in this country illegally, we will do it in a heartbeat,” he added. “The citizens of Greeley have a right to expect that of their police department.”

ICE officials said privacy laws prevented them from naming the suspects.

But the Greeley Tribune identified the father and son as Francisco Loma, 67, and Jose Loma, 33, both illegal immigrants from Mexico.

The pair has unrelated convictions for sexually assaulting underage girls.

The father was convicted in Los Angeles of sexually assaulting a 12-year-old female relative and served a three-year prison sentence.

His son was convicted in the Weld County Court in 2003 for sexual assault on his 15-year-old girlfriend when he was 27 years old. He received a five-year deferred sentence.

The third man was a 24-year-old Mexican man who was an active member of the Norteño street gang that operates in the Greeley area.

Although he is a U.S. permanent resident, his criminal convictions make him eligible for deportation, ICE officials said.

He has a felony conviction for “menacing,” and separate misdemeanor convictions for child abuse and third-degree assault.

All three suspects are currently in deportation proceedings.
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2007/dec/28/gang-...ffenders-caught-ice/

Gotta love those Mexican family values . . . What an asset to America: Cultural child molesters, rapists, murderers and perpetually subzero IQ's,


Don't worrie f u c k i n g beverly your turn will be soon you will get the mexican sausage between your *** black *** in an lonely dark alley

Gotta love those Mexican family values . . .

Arizona economy bracing for immigration crackdown

PHOENIX, Arizona (AFP) -- New laws targeting employers who hire illegal immigrants take effect here on January 1, with experts predicting the move may cost the state's economy billions of dollars in lost income and taxes.

The new laws are described as the toughest local anti-illegal immigration legislation in the United States, and will sanction businesses who knowingly hire undocumented workers.

Any employer who falls foul of the law will see their business license suspended for 10 days for a first offense; a second infraction will see the license permanently revoked.

Judith Gans, a University of Arizona immigration policy expert who has studied the economic impact of illegal immigrants, said the new law will have a dramatic effect on the local economy.

""Industries will shrink and prices will go up,"" Gans told AFP.

The price of a hamburger, a head of lettuce, and a week's worth of gardening services will all increase as workforces shrink, Gans said.

Illegal immigrants ""are filling gaps in the labor force, and as those gaps widen, prices will go up,"" she said. ""That theory is not contested.""

According to an October study released by Gans, Arizona's foreign-born population has tripled in less than two decades, from about 269,000 in 1990 to 831,000 in 2004.

Experts peg the state's illegal immigrant population at about half a million. Workers, mainly from Mexico, flock to pick lettuce in Yuma, make sushi in Phoenix, and clean hotel rooms in Flagstaff.

According to Gans' study, they make up 59 percent of the workforce in farming; 27 percent in construction; 51 percent in landscaping; 26 percent in hotel work; 23 percent in restaurants; 33 percent in private homes; and 46 percent in textile manufacturing.

Out of every six non-citizens in Arizona, five are illegal, according to Gans. Her study indicates the net 2004 fiscal impact of Arizona illegals was positive by about 940 million dollars, when balanced against costs of 1.4 billion dollars for education, health care, and law enforcement.

A public outcry and inaction by lawmakers in Washington to pass immigration reform laws, led state officials to pass the employer sanctions law.

Local businesses are bracing for the effect of the crackdown.

""Oh yeah, it'll affect us,"" said Jeremiah, the owner of Around Town Landscaping in Phoenix who estimated that the cost of having a garden mowed will go up 15 to 20 percent in 2008 as a result.

""We're going to lose some qualified guys, for sure. I'll keep my product the same, but it'll affect efficiency. It's a lack of foresight to think it wouldn't affect those things,"" added Jeremiah, who would not give his last name.

""It's not the right way to go. I don't think people did their homework on it, and no one consulted small companies on how they feel about it,"" he added.

Construction costs won't noticeably rise, said Julie Fenner, office manager of Hidden Valley Roofing in Phoenix. The company has always screened for proof of citizenship.

""To spread that over the cost of a roof, it's not going to happen,"" she said. ""I can't see costs going up based on that.""

Agriculture is expected to be among the industries hardest hit by the new law. Yuma needs about 50,000 pickers during lettuce harvest. Only half that number lives on the American side of the border. Pickers now earn 12 to 14 dollars per hour, said Dawn McLaren, an Arizona State University research economist.

Their wages could rise to 20 dollars per hour.

As more and more farms move south of the border to avoid high production costs, food may have to be imported on a weak dollar, making groceries more expensive.

""If we can't find labor here at a reasonable cost to business, businesses can simply move their business elsewhere,"" McLaren said.

""We may see the cost of having to import stuff.""

One Arizona grower recently decided to buy a farm in Iowa instead of investing in his Arizona operations, said Joe Sigg, director of government relations for the Arizona Farm Bureau.

""Banks will start looking at credit risks,"" Sigg said. ""It's going to be more of an economic cloud on Arizona than the cost of a head of lettuce will be. Any prospectus for investors will have to have a flashing sign around it saying, This business may lose its LLC.' I think the investment community will chill on Arizona as well.""

Uncertainty about what will happen is as big an issue as anything, Gans said. ""We'll see,"" she said. ""Arizona has certainly put itself on the line.""

Immigration law opponents continue appellate battle

by Marie Price
The Journal Record January 2, 2008

OKLAHOMA CITY – The latest court ruling against a challenge to Oklahoma’s tough new immigration law will be appealed, says the leader of a national Hispanic group behind the lawsuit.

Latest Law News Osages see court victory as step toward more sovereigntyVonage, Nortel settle patent suit without paymentsNew type of high-tech traffic tickets planned for TulsaRobert Henry named 10th Circuit chief judgeOBA panel calls for Gassaway disbarment10th Circuit tosses Osage lawsuit against stateCity plans to seize family’s bull terriersStipe transfers oil and gas interestsState Court of Civil Appeals sides with Health DepartmentMan ruled exempt from uninsured coverage Current Edition

On Friday, a Tulsa federal judge refused to reconsider an earlier ruling dismissing a lawsuit against House Bill 1804. The plaintiffs, led by the National Coalition of Latino Clergy, CONLAMIC-Oklahoma, several churches, businesses and John Doe immigrants, raised several standing-related issues asking U.S. District Judge James Payne to vacate the judgment he issued earlier this month dismissing the second challenge to the law.


The Rev. Miguel Rivera, national CONLAMIC president, said his organization’s legal defense fund will take the decision before the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver.

“Harmful effects, including loss in local revenues and hardship on hard-working immigrants, have resulted since the law’s implementation on Nov. 1,” Rivera said. “CONLAMIC Legal Defense Fund will continue to fight against HB 1804 to ensure the immigrants of Oklahoma and those who are perceived to be immigrants receive fair and equal treatment, per the constitution of the United States.”

Rivera called the measure an unconstitutional law that breeds discrimination and punishes local businesses, churches and immigrant families.

As Payne outlined in throwing out lawsuits in mid-December and October, he said the issues raised by the plaintiffs in their motion to vacate judgment fail to describe specific injuries suffered by the named plaintiffs due to the new law.

In December, Payne described the complaint as too broad and said some plaintiffs could remedy the grievances they raise by complying with federal law.

Payne threw out the most-recent lawsuit for similar reasons a previous challenge was dismissed: failure of the some plaintiffs to outline the injuries they allege are caused by the law, most of which took effect Nov. 1. Other sections become effective in July.

In October, Payne said the plaintiffs were unable to prove they had standing to challenge the law.

In his last-previous ruling, Payne said the lead plaintiff organization failed to identify an individual with standing to sue, leading to the group’s dismissal from the suit for lack of standing. He also found that, because two churches cannot be prosecuted under the law, they lack standing. Payne said a construction company and restaurant lack standing to challenge provisions not yet effective.

Payne also said the injuries complained of by individual plaintiffs are speculative in nature.
He said some individual plaintiffs might have standing under the constitutional case-or-controversy requirement to challenge certain provisions, but fail under “prudential standing” analysis, which involves judicially self-imposed limits on the exercise of federal jurisdiction.

Payne said the court might reach a different conclusion if the case involved child plaintiffs whose unlawful presence in the United States is involuntary.

The protesting groups failed in an effort to prevent the law from taking effect on Nov. 1
while the legal case was pending.

The law makes it illegal to knowingly transport illegal immigrants, establishes proof of citizenship requirements to receive some government services and places new worker-identification requirements on employers.

On Monday, state Rep. Randy Terrill, R-Moore, architect of the new law, termed it “absolutely monumental” that a new Oklahoma Poll shows immigration tied with education as the top issue on the minds of Oklahoma voters, “especially given all the fear-mongering, trumped-up negative publicity and over-the-top rhetoric from the pro-illegal alien lobby and its allies, who would very much like to see HB 1804 either weakened or repealed.”

In the poll, sponsored by the Tulsa World and KOTV, some 16 percent of those surveyed listed illegal immigration and education and the state’s most-pressing problem.

Terrill said the results show that cracking down on illegal immigration is not about left or right.

“It’s about right and wrong, respect for the rule of law and upholding our state and national sovereignty,” he said. “It’s also about a group of public officials doing exactly what it is the people elected and expect them to do.”

NORTH CAROLINA

New Laws of 2008: Immigration, smoking and loans among issues

By James Romoser
JOURNAL RALEIGH BUREAU
Tuesday, January 1, 2008

New Laws 2008

A number of new laws, covering a wide range of topics, take effect today:

Immigration

Requires jailers to ask about the immigration status of anyone arrested on a felony or impaired-driving charge.

Adoptions

Allows adopted children to connect with their biological parents later in life without going through the court system.

Military life-insurance

Protects members of the U.S. military from predatory or dishonest life-insurance practices.

Smoking in government buildings

Bans smoking in state government buildings, and allows local governments to ban smoking in local-government buildings.

Smoking in long-term-care homes

Bans smoking in adult-care homes and other places that provide long-term care.

Legal-expense funds

Requires politicians to disclose contributions and expenses related to legal-expense funds.

Felony disclosure


Requires jailers to ask about the immigration status of anyone arrested of a felony or impaired driving.

Recycling

Requires bars and restaurants that go through a lot of glass bottles to have a recycling plan as a condition for getting alcohol permits.

Source: www.ncleg.net

RALEIGH

Starting today, jailers across North Carolina must ask anyone charged with a serious crime about their immigration status, and if they find someone who is in the country illegally, they must notify federal authorities.

The goal of the new law, state legislators said, is to deport more illegal immigrants who commit crimes.

But law-enforcement officials and people involved in the immigration debate have contrasting predictions about how much practical effect the law will have.

“I don’t think this law has a big impact on the population in our jail or in Forsyth County’s handling of the immigration issues,” said Sheriff Bill Schatzman of Forsyth County.

The immigration law is one of about 40 new state laws that were passed in 2007 and are taking effect today. The laws cover a range of diverse topics.

One law makes it easier for people who were adopted to connect with their birth parents.

Another law, passed in the midst of the nation’s subprime-mortgage crisis, aims to protect North Carolina homeowners. It makes it tougher for lenders to issue questionable loans, and it provides homeowners with more legal recourse.

And two separate laws limit smoking in North Carolina: one bans smoking in state-owned buildings, and the other bans smoking in long-term-care centers.

The smoking ban in long-term-care centers was a response to a fatal fire in March in a Mocksville adult-care home.

Many of the other laws are small acts that make minor, technical changes. But the immigration law, which passed nearly unanimously in the N.C. General Assembly last summer, has stirred strong opinions on both sides of the immigration debate.

The law requires jailers to try to determine the residency status of anyone charged with a felony or with driving while impaired, either by asking the prisoner or by examining relevant documents. If it can’t be determined that a prisoner is a legal resident or a U.S. citizen, the jailer must send a query through a special information network, which notifies federal authorities.

Schatzman said that federal immigration authorities are unlikely to have the resources to respond to every single query immediately, even if it is clear that a prisoner is an illegal immigrant. There is nothing in the new law that allows a jail to further detain an illegal immigrant.

“This new law that goes into effect requires us to make a different notification. It doesn’t require (immigration authorities) to come back to us at all, and it does not allow us to prevent someone from making bail,” Schatzman said.

Forsyth County is applying for a federal program that will train local officers to screen people for immigration status. That program, once enacted, will allow the county to crack down on illegal immigration more so than the new state law will, Schatzman said.

Tony Asion, the deputy director of El Pueblo Inc., a statewide advocacy group, said he is concerned that the law will increase racial profiling. He said that Hispanics, regardless of their immigration status, will be disproportionately targeted.


“We are basically picking on a certain group,” Asion said. “Not everybody is really getting stopped and checked. There are some people that could be here undocumented that will never go through this process. To give you an example, a Canadian. Chances are, they’re not going to get checked.”

Asion said he also disagrees with doing blanket immigration checks of people as soon as they are charged - before they have been proven guilty of any crime.


Ron Woodard, the director of N.C. Listen, which supports tougher enforcement of immigration laws, said he wishes that legislators had gone further. The law, on its own, won’t have much effect, Woodard said, because local officers are not required to call Immigrations and Customs Enforcement and actively notify them of illegal immigrants.

Merely putting a query into the system is unlikely to trigger detainment procedures, Woodard said.

“If they’re not required to call up ICE and say ‘Come get this person,’ it’s just not going to happen,” Woodard said.

■ James Romoser can be reached at 919-210-6794 or at jromoser@wsjournal.com.

MISSOURI, ST. CHARLES

Federal agents visit St. Charles County Jail daily looking for illegals

By Mark Schlinkmann
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
01/02/2008

ST. CHARLES COUNTY — Since federal immigration agents began making daily visits to the St. Charles County Jail on Oct. 30, they've learned of 48 inmates or former inmates believed to be in the United States illegally.

County Corrections Director Alan Stahl said the agents reviewed jail files on more than 1,300 inmates held during the past several months.

As of Monday, nine were still in the jail awaiting trial on either local or federal charges. The charges range from drug sales to failing to appear for a court hearing on an O'Fallon, Mo., ordinance violation, Stahl said.

Of the other 39, some were handed over to the U.S. Immigration Customs Enforcement agency, and others were sentenced to prison on state charges unrelated to immigration. Stahl could not provide a detailed breakdown. Advertisement

He said immigration officials usually hold off proceedings aimed at deportation until suspects finish their incarceration on other charges.

Before the daily visits in St. Charles, Stahl said, federal agents were "probably checking a couple times a month to once a week" at the jail.

Ken Carlson, the federal agency's assistant field office director for Missouri and Kansas, said the checks are part of a general effort to reach out to local law enforcement authorities.

They come at a time of heightened concern about cracking down on illegal immigration, both locally and nationally.

Carlson said immigration agents don't make daily visits to jails in St. Louis or in St. Louis and Jefferson counties because they have access to computer databases that provide information on people in those facilities. The agents then follow up with in-person or telephone interviews.

An antiquated computer system at the St. Charles County Jail prevents remote access for the federal agency. That's expected to change, Stahl said, after the jail's software is upgraded by the end of next month.

In Lincoln, Franklin and Warren counties, Carlson said, immigration agents rely on local authorities to notify them that someone born in another country has been arrested on an unrelated charge. That's also the case across the Mississippi River, in St. Clair and Madison counties, he said.

St. Charles County officials said the federal agency suggested daily visits after the county applied in 2007 to join a program in which sheriff's deputies get special training to investigate immigration violations.

A spokesman for the federal agency, Carl Rusnok, said the agency doesn't release information by county on the number of jail inmates flagged with "detainers" for future action because of suspected immigration violations.

Local officials, however, provided some information.

In St. Louis County, for example, the jail had at least 62 inmates between July 2006 and July 2007 who faced potential immigration prosecution following their incarceration. Tricia Rodgers, a county corrections official, said the charges included relatively few serious felonies.

In St. Clair County, jail superintendent Thomas Knapp said the federal agency had placed detainers on 15 inmates since Sept. 1. The inmates were arrested on charges such as unlawful use of a weapon and drug possession.

Rusnok said the timing of immigration proceedings often depends on whether local prosecutors follow through with their initial charges. Police say that usually happens, except when the charges are minor, such as traffic cases.

"Some people we can place a detainer on and take into custody literally the same day," Rusnok said. "In other cases, it could be years, after their trials and sentences."

Kentucky

Illegal-worker issues growing in importance

By Brandon Ortiz
BORTIZ@HERALD-LEADER.COM

The countdown concludes Sunday with issue No. 1.Foes of illegal immigration are hoping that the high-profile attention the issue has gotten in the U.S. presidential race will translate into legislative victories in the upcoming General Assembly session.

Scores of anti-illegal immigration measures have been filed by lawmakers in recent years. Most have died without getting a vote or even a hearing.

State Rep. Rick Nelson, D-Midd*****ro, said the presidential race has kept the illegal immigration issue in the news. He said a growing number of people want the state to curb illegal immigration.

"I feel a growing concern and anger among the citizens," Nelson said. "I feel like there is a growing concern that they're about to get overwhelmed with illegals. I think the cork is about to pop off the bottle."

Advocates for illegal immigrants say this is one of the toughest political environments they've faced. As of Nov. 16, two-and-a-half times more immigration-related bills -- 1,562 -- have been filed in state legislatures this year than in 2006, according to the non-partisan National Conference of State Legislatures.

"We are going to have to work very hard to protect the rights of immigrants," said Freddie Peralta, president of the Kentucky Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. "The immigration problem -- everybody agrees it needs to be addressed at the federal level. But we need to be realistic. The truth of the matter is people are here, they are here in large quantities and they are helping the economy."


Advocates for illegal immigrants can take comfort that they're bedfellows with the business lobby on the immigration issue. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce recently announced that it will mount legal challenges against immigration laws passed by the states. The chamber says such laws encroach on an area that is the responsibility of the federal government.

The Kentucky Chamber of Commerce also wants the General Assembly to defer to the federal government.

It worries that large companies with facilities in several states would struggle to comply "with a dizzying array of different state regulations while also working to comply with federal requirements," said Mike Ridenour, vice president of public affairs for the Kentucky chamber. "The odds are high that some states will impose standards and penalties that conflict, or even contradict, federal rules."

Nelson has prefiled a bill that would give the state the power to suspend the business license of any business caught hiring illegal immigrants. It would also create a state police task force to investigate illegal immigration, provide training for immigration enforcement and establish a hotline for reporting businesses suspected of hiring undocumented workers.

He said that businesses would probably get a warning for the first offense, but could see their licenses permanently revoked for later offenses.


But Nelson acknowledges that his bill is not likely to pass. He said he has not received the support of House Democratic leaders, and he expects the measure to be controversial among urban lawmakers.

"I just don't know if we can get legislators in urban areas (to support it), unless the citizens get behind this," Nelson said. "Then it's not going to go anywhere."

Even if it did pass, the bill could run into legal problems.

State agencies must enter into agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to enforce federal immigration law.


But the agency does not allow police to conduct their own investigations or enforcement raids, as Nelson wants state police to do in his bill. It only allows law enforcement to detain illegal immigrants they happen to encounter during the course of their duties. Police can already arrest illegal immigrants, and regularly do, if they commit a crime.

State Sen. Robert Stivers, R-Manchester, has said he will file a bill that would establish a centralized screening process to check the legal status of all jail inmates. Its odds seem good in the Republican-controlled Senate, but it is not clear how it would fare in the Democratic-run House.


At least one pro-immigrant bill is expected to be filed, though it, too, is unlikely to go anywhere. State Sen. Ernesto Scorsone, D-Lexington, will promote a measure that would allow illegal immigrants to get driver's licenses and buy car insurance.


Scorsone said not allowing undocumented workers to obtain licenses and be tested for their driving proficiency creates a public safety problem. And insurance rates are higher because illegal immigrants can't buy car insurance, Scorsone said. "We need to make sure people learn the rules of the road and have insurance," he said.

TEXAS, GEORGETOWN

Georgetown might crack down on illegal workers

1/9/2008 6:23 PM
By: Chelsea Hover

In the past, regulating employment of illegal immigrants has been left up to the federal government to control.

But now the city of Georgetown is thinking of taking matters into its own hands.

Williamson County is one of the fastest growing counties in the country. Workers for construction projects, landscaping, and engineering are a daily necessity.

Despite the need for workers, the city of Georgetown is considering revising their policies when it comes to the companies they hire to do those jobs.

Councilmember Keith Brainard brought up the issue in a December City Council meeting. He said he's been thinking about illegal immigration for a long time, and thinks it's time for local government to step in because, as he put it, "the federal government has not been doing their job in that regard."

"We're simply asking that contractors for the city follow federal laws," Brainard said.

But not everyone agrees it's the city's place to control that.

"I don't know how they're going to do it ... penalizing them for employing undocumented workers. Federal rules already address that, so I don't know why it's become a local issue," League of United Latin American Citizens president Jose Ortiz said.

Right now the city staff is gathering information to see what can be done, and what has been done in other cities around the country.

The city staff plans to