California must stem the flow of illegal immigrants

(Posted By Uriel Rivera)

By Steve Poizner (Governor Candidate)

The state should go after employers who hire them, curb taxpayer-funded benefits, deploy the National Guard to help the feds at the border and penalize 'sanctuary' cities.

The United States, and California in particular, has been built by immigrants who legally crossed our borders in search of a brighter future. For generations, these legal immigrants have made immeasurable contributions to creating a unique and vibrant California. As Americans and Californians, we are right to welcome people from all over the globe when they obey our laws and are willing to play by the rules.

Illegal immigration is another matter entirely. With the state budget in tatters, millions of residents out of work and a state prison system strained by massive overcrowding, California simply cannot continue to ignore the strain that illegal immigration puts on our budget and economy. Illegal aliens cost taxpayers in our state billions of dollars each year. As economist Philip J. Romero concluded in a 2007 study, "illegal immigrants impose a 'tax' on legal California residents in the tens of billions of dollars."

Some have said that illegal immigration is an issue for the federal government, not the states, and that there's little a governor can do to fix the problem. Those people are wrong.

In government at any level, federal or state, a chief executive's duty is to preserve the rule of law. This also means confronting those who flout it, including illegal immigrants and those who shield them.

(to read the full article please follow this link: http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-poizner27-2010mar27,0,5816792.story)