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Thursday, February 16, 2017

Phoenix Rejects "Sanctuary City" Policy Despite Mounting Pressure


Phoenix, Arizona-  Yesterday in a resounding 7-2 vote the Phoenix City Council rejected a citizen petition to enact a "Sanctuary City" policy similar to those in place in Los Angeles and Chicago.
The vote came in the afternoon following a day filled with demonstrations and testimonies from supporters and opposition.

Dr. Kelli Ward, a U.S. Senate candidate running for Sen Jeff Flake's seat and 2016 primary opponent of Sen. John McCain said via facebook live from City Hall:
"Ultimately the city council did, I believe the right thing. Because we know that Phoenix cannot be a sanctuary city. It goes, flies in the face of law and order here in our community, in our state and in our nation. And we are a nation of laws. We have got to enforce our laws, we cannot selectively enforce or ignore laws that are on the books. So if people are here illegally and they have committed a crime, they are likely to be deported."
According to a 2014 Pew Research Center study more than a quarter million illegal immigrants inhabit the Phoenix metro area despite state actions like SB1070 which sought to stem the tide flowing across the deserts and mountains from Mexico.
It is no wonder that Arizona has made immigration headlines for over two decades taking more and more desperate steps to maintain order while the Obama administration undermined legislators, governors and sheriffs at every turn.

Arizona has continued to defy mounting pressure from more liberal neighboring states absent any meaningful support from Washington D.C. Even the Senators elected to represent the 6.73 million people astounded their constituents by supporting the "Gang of Eight" immigration reform as recently as July 2016 according to Politico.

The people of Phoenix in particular and Arizona as a whole sent a strong message yesterday just as they did at President Trump's rallies and eventual election: They've had enough.

Photo Credit by AZWatchdog https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Phoenix_city_hall-1600x1200.jpg#mw-jump-to-license

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