Maybe now Washington will listen

Eric Stefik, Las Vegas

Monday, May 3, 2010 | 2:05 a.m.

The controversial new Arizona immigration law will no doubt be subjected to constitutional challenges, and since it reflects on what clearly is a federal government matter, it can only have a limited impact on a national problem.

It would be impossible to obtain anything resembling a clear national consensus on immigration, because we have values and concerns which are not mutually shared.

Calls for amnesty are met with a mixed reception, too. Some see this as a way of rewarding people who have come here without authorization, many of whom are taking jobs in an economy that produces far too few. It is often observed that the current illegal population overtaxes our health care system, and that the children of these immigrants are overpopulating our schools at a time of serious budgetary crises.

These are real and measurable issues, but mostly ignored by folks who favor unrestricted immigration.

Amnesty is of little significance if we do nothing to halt the seemingly endless flow of illegal immigrants, and it is simple fact that most of these illegal immigrants are coming from Latin America.

Other countries have far more strict rules on immigration, and leave our government with little cause for apology for stepping up enforcement of borders to prevent people from slipping across.

Flawed as the new Arizona bill may be, it would be a mistake to ignore this, as it represents a message of many frustrated Americans, who would like to see a stronger and less ambiguous response from their representatives in Washington.