FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NEWS RELEASE
CONTACT: BRIAN PERRY (601) 984-3130 OR 769-798-1546
"EAVES WRONG FOR MISSISSIPPI, AGAIN"
Latest reckless and false attack by Eaves not true -
Governor opposes amnesty
JACKSON (October 18, 2007) - "As usual, John Arthur Eaves, Jr. doesn't know what he is talking about. Governor Barbour opposes amnesty and the Governor has said publicly many times he is opposed to giving illegal immigrants drivers' licenses. Under the Barbour Administration, illegal immigrants cannot receive a driver's license, welfare, unemployment benefits, Medicaid, food stamps, or register to vote. John Arthur Eaves' latest false and reckless attack is nothing but a lie, and further demonstrates he will say or do anything to try to get a vote," said Brian Perry, spokesman for Barbour for Governor.
Perry continued, "Because the federal government has not done its job on illegal immigration, the state of Mississippi under Governor Barbour's leadership is taking steps to do something about it. As usual, John Arthur Eaves' latest attack commercial ignores facts by making more false attacks and reckless allegations."
Perry cited Governor Barbour's "Agenda for Mississippi's Future," which was released earlier this week that discusses some of what Governor Barbour has done, and describes what he intends to do in the future to fight illegal immigration:
"Continue to help the federal government enforce immigration laws by giving state and local law enforcement new tools; fighting identity theft; deploying volunteers from the Mississippi National Guard to help protect the border; and not allowing illegal immigrants to be eligible for Medicaid, welfare, unemployment benefits, food stamps or to receive a driver's license in Mississippi. Illegal immigrants should be deported, not paroled." - Governor Haley Barbour, Agenda for Mississippi's Future
(You can read the Agenda for Mississippi's Future online at: www.haleybarbour.com/future.html)
[Following below is more on illegal immigration from Governor Barbour's "Agenda for Mississippi's Future."]
"Providing a secure border is a primary responsibility of the federal government. For decades, however, our nation's borders have not been secured properly, which puts our nation's security at risk and makes our immigration laws largely irrelevant. In the next four years, my Administration will continue helping to fill the void.
My Administration is working with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Immigration and Custom Enforcement to get state law enforcement agencies increased resources to pursue investigations relating to illegal immigration, human smuggling, illegal drugs, and money laundering. For example, this new authority would allow the Department of Corrections to investigate suspected illegal immigrants in the prison system so that after they complete their sentences, they will be deported instead of paroled.
To assist in the policing of non-English speaking populations, my Administration has implemented Spanish training courses for state and local law enforcement officers.
Securing false documents is key to settling illegally in the United States. The Department of Public Safety is now training all drivers' license examiners to identify fraudulent documents to help prevent the serious crime of identity theft. In addition, I will continue to push to prosecute any state employee who betrays the public trust by participating in any scheme to sell drivers' licenses fraudulently. Illegal immigrants are not allowed to have a driver's license in Mississippi.
I have authorized the deployment of Mississippi National Guard volunteers to assist in the United States border mission. Mississippi National Guard units have participated in the apprehension of more than 250 illegal aliens through overhead aircraft surveillance. These volunteer deployments also have provided valuable training missions for our troops.
In Mississippi, illegal immigrants are not eligible for Medicaid, welfare, unemployment benefits, food stamps, to receive a driver's license or register to vote." - Governor Haley Barbour, Agenda for Mississippi's Future.
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