Control the borders

In his recent “state of the state” address Gov. King talked about national security concerns and what Maine should do. President Bush in his speech in Portland also talked about the billions of dollars that will be spent on national security. In the meantime, there are three things that Maine could do, with little effort or expense, to contribute to national security and to controlling illegal immigration. There are eight to 11 million illegal (unidentified) aliens in the U.S. and thousands more come every day. No one can honestly say that we’re “secure”.

First, there’s a section of the immigration law (commonly referred to as “Section 133”) which says that local and state law enforcement officers can be allowed to enforce certain provisions of those immigration laws. “Section 133” says that the attorney general of a state can enter into a written agreement with the U.S. attorney general. This agreement would allow the law enforcement officers within the state to make arrests for some immigration violations after the law enforcement officers have first had training. Law enforcement officers in the state often encounter violations of the immigration laws but, at present, they have no authority to do anything about it. They can call INS and hope that they have someone available; often they don’t.

Enforcement officers of the INS have authority, under Maine law, to make arrests for certain crimes. The parties realized that Border Patrol Agents, Special Agents, etc., were often the only law enforcement officers around when a crime was committed, but they didn’t have authority to act.

The INS officers don’t often use the authority, but it’s there when they need it. The same would be true if Maine law enforcement officers were allowed to make arrests for immigration law violations.

Another thing that Maine could do is to make sure that the drivers’ licenses that it issues are secure. Maine (like most other states) pretty much accepts the word of the applicant that they’re entitled to a license. There are no requirements that applicants for drivers’ licenses show proof of citizenship or legal status in the U.S. Applicants have to provide a Social Security number and state their place of birth, neither of which “proves” anything. Maine could enact legislation that requires that a serious effort be made to identify applicants for drivers’ licenses. The applicants should be required to show proof of citizenship or proof (if they’re aliens) that they’re in the U.S. legally. Drivers’ licenses are widely accepted as proof of identity, but they’re far from proof.

Maine already has a law (Title 29, section 871) which makes It a “Class E” crime to knowingly employ an illegal alien. I retired from the Border Patrol in 1995 and am not aware that this section of Maine law has ever been enforced. As a matter of fact, an official of the Maine Department of Labor has stated that, in his opinion, “no one was illegal; they’re only undocumented workers.” I don’t think Maine should take the lead in enforcing the immigration laws, but when state officials become aware of illegal aliens they should investigate to see if a violation of Maine law has been committed. At the very least, they should report the illegal aliens to the nearest INS office.

It’s doubtful that the policy makers in Maine are going to pursue these avenues unless they believe it’s in their best political interest. If we want them to do something about immigration – particularly illegal immigration – we’re going to have to let them hear from us.

A vast majority of the people who are in the U.S. illegally are here only because they can’t make a living at home.

Still, if we continue to tolerate the millions who are here illegally, there will always be that certain percentage among them who are intent on doing us harm. Until we have control over our borders, no one can honestly say that we’re secure.

John H. Frecker is a resident of Baileyville.