{"id":17092,"date":"2018-05-15T13:45:55","date_gmt":"2018-05-15T17:45:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/live-immigrationreform.pantheonsite.io\/?p=17092"},"modified":"2018-12-28T10:28:33","modified_gmt":"2018-12-28T15:28:33","slug":"californias-next-lawless-step-illegal-aliens-in-public-office","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.immigrationreform.com\/2018\/05\/15\/californias-next-lawless-step-illegal-aliens-in-public-office\/","title":{"rendered":"California\u2019s Next Lawless Step: Illegal Aliens in Public Office"},"content":{"rendered":"

Just when you think California has finally done it all, they come up with something new to add to their mix of reckless lawlessness.\u00a0 Not content with being a sanctuary state<\/a> or trying to order private citizens and businesses<\/a> to possibly obstruct federal immigration enforcement, now they want to let illegal aliens serve in public office.<\/p>\n

On May 1, California State Senator Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens) introduced Senate Bill (SB) 174<\/a>, ridiculously named the \u201cCalifornia Inclusion Act.\u201d\u00a0 The bill makes anyone \u201cregardless of citizenship or immigration status, \u2026 eligible to hold an appointed civil office if the person is 18 years of age and a resident of the state.\u201d\u00a0 This would have the effect of opening up thousands, probably even tens of thousands, of appointed positions<\/a> in state and local agencies, boards and commissions to illegal aliens.<\/p>\n

Under Senator Lara\u2019s bill, as long as a job is appointed rather than elected, and civil rather than military, illegal aliens would no longer be barred from being appointed. Secretaries of whole statewide departments?\u00a0 Criminal prosecutors in the Attorney General\u2019s or local District Attorney\u2019s office?\u00a0 The whole state parole board?\u00a0 Any city or county board?\u00a0 All no problem: suddenly wide open to illegal aliens at the stroke of a pen.<\/p>\n

Could the state or local governments pay them, too?\u00a0 Knowingly employing illegal aliens is a federal crime<\/a>: the law authorizes penalties of up to six months\u2019 imprisonment and a $3000 fine for each alien involved <\/u><\/strong>[emphasis added], and notably doesn\u2019t make any exceptions for state or local government employment.\u00a0 But would that matter?<\/p>\n

First, the U.S. Department of Justice would have to actually decide to charge the employers criminally, itself an\u00a0 open question.\u00a0 But even if they did, state officials would then likely make some absurd argument (yet again) about how the Tenth Amendment allows them to defy federal law.\u00a0 While this would turn the Supremacy Clause<\/a> of the U.S. Constitution on its head, the ever-creative Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals might happily agree with it.\u00a0 Senator Lara, of course, already says that at least<\/a> illegal-alien \u201cDACA\u201d recipients would be eligible for pay under his bill, despite the Trump administration\u2019s efforts to wind up that program, and despite multiple courts<\/a> now having ruled<\/a> that DACA recipients actually aren\u2019t \u201clawfully present.\u201d<\/p>\n

Serving in public office means exercising sovereignty.\u00a0 It means taking decisions to enforce and impose the potentially heavy-handed power of government on other people, citizens and non-citizens alike.\u00a0 It\u2019s part of why we limit serving on juries to citizens (although California has had its issues<\/a> with that, too).\u00a0 The California Government Code even still, perhaps surprisingly, defines \u201cthe people\u201d within the meaning of state law as only including citizens<\/a>.\u00a0 But SB 174 is one more step in the direction of making the meaning of the word \u201ccitizenship\u201d in California mean nothing. In California\u2019s upside-down world, American citizenship might already fairly be called a detriment, while it\u2019s the illegal aliens who are the ones shrouded in all sorts of benefits and privileges<\/a>, and now, with this bill, they could effectively be ruling over citizens.<\/p>\n

SB 174 specifically says it doesn\u2019t make illegal aliens eligible for elected office, but at this rate, it\u2019s not much of a stretch to see that coming next.<\/p>\n

The situation is now disturbingly easy to sum up<\/a>: \u201cCalifornia Can\u2019t Stop Passing Laws To Shield Illegal Aliens.\u201d\u00a0 But overreach always provokes a response, and at some point, hopefully even the people of California will decide they\u2019ve had enough with this kind of foolishness.