About time someone took stand

By: FREEMAN SAWYER - For The Californian | Thursday, October 7, 2004 8:40 PM PDT ∞

Kudos to Mayor Mike Naggar! His stand in response to his constituents' complaints regarding Temecula's illegal worker gathering sites is refreshing. Most long-standing elected officials blame someone else or play the politically correct card, instead of actually working on a solution.

These sites usually develop into real messes. The picking up and dropping off of these laborers often results in traffic problems. Women, driving or walking near these sites, often fall victim to lewd remarks, and children walking to school may receive a different kind of education, as there are no restrooms available. All these nuisances, along with that of public intoxication, can lead to some unsavory health and public exposure problems.

Another brave mayor, Rudy Giuliani, implemented the "broken window" policy in New York City. At the first sign of vandalism, his orders were: fix, replace or paint. This concept kept loiterers who might think no one cares from setting up camp. What does an "ignored" site where illegals hang out daily, without any consequences, say about our community? It says no one really cares about its laws, their enforcement or its women and children. It says no one really cares about the toll on legal, taxpaying, law-abiding citizens.

I admire Mayor Naggar for not being swayed by employers who use these workers to pad their own pockets while the rest of us suffer, both socially and economically. If there is no place where these men can gather and wait for the lawbreakers who hire them, soon the problem will disappear.

One might ask why this problem is the city's. Why haven't these day laborers already been sent packing by our very own Temecula-based Border Patrol officers? The simple truth is the existence of a Border Patrol policy against performing any "interior" enforcement. That means no Border Patrol agent may inquire about the immigration status of any individual who is orderly in his conduct, once that individual has successfully traveled a certain distance from the border.

I know some of our local agents, and they are extremely frustrated by this hands-off policy and are leaving the Border Patrol in huge numbers. The truth is, an agent who breaks policy is subject to being fired.

Some of you may remember Homeland Security Undersecretary Asa Hutchinson saying at the Temecula town hall meeting that he was concerned about these lawbreakers fearing deportation, that they are losing sleep over it. Come on now! There are many reasons I can't sleep, and no one in the federal government seems to care.

I'm worried about the safety of my grandchildren from another terrorist attack such as 9-11. I'm worried that our hospitals in Southern California are closing like the banks in 1929, because they are so overburdened by the costs of treating these millions of nonpaying customers.

I worry that the gangs from Mexico seem to have moved their headquarters here to prey on the citizens of Southern California. I worry about the quality of education our own children are getting due to the overcrowding and catering to the children of these lawbreakers.

This reminds me of the tactic practiced by criminals who become "home invaders." They just beat down the door of our homes, wreck havoc, take whatever they want and leave us ---- if they don't kill us ---- to clean up the mess and suffer the consequences of their presence.

Are you scared yet? You should be.

Freeman Sawyer of Camarillo is a member of the Temecula-based Citizens Alliance for a Secure America.