Dalton Daily Citizen

April 29, 2018

Payne wrong about bill

Proving that Republican does not always mean conservative, state Sen. Chuck Payne has voted three times to stop the effort to change the drivers license Georgia issues to illegal aliens so that it is different from real, legal immigrant’s drivers licenses and cannot be used as federal ID to board airliners, enter military bases — or register to vote.

Voters should note that in 2016, 37 GOP members of the Georgia senate — including former senator Charlie Bethel — already voted for this common sense public safety concept.

In each case, four-term senator, seasoned pro-enforcement immigration authority and long-time attorney, Josh McKoon, sponsored the legislation. The idea that Sen. Payne can somehow see errors missed by these conservatives is laughably preposterous.

It was was stunning to see video of Sen. Chuck Payne tell the audience at the recent Daily Citizen-News candidate forum that “Georgia does not deal in immigration. We don’t have immigration laws.” Respectfully, this is ignorant nonsense.

As a pro-enforcement immigration authority, this writer has worked with state legislators since 2004 on state immigration laws. Sen. Payne’s lack of knowledge on this topic is alarming to those who work to make Georgia as unwelcoming as possible to the crime of illegal immigration — and it is dangerous.

• In 2006, Georgia passed a law to require official agencies that administer taxpayer-funded public benefits to insure those benefits do not go to illegal aliens. That is an immigration law.

• In 2006 and 2011 Georgia passed a laws requiring use of the no-cost federal E-Verify system to help deter illegal alien labor. Those are immigration laws.

• In 2009 Georgia passed a sanctuary city law — immigration law again.

Payne’s worldview clearly does not match up with President Trump’s pro-American agenda. But it does align with the Chamber of Commerce pro-amnesty, anti-enforcement policies pushed in Atlanta.

As he says, Sen. Payne may very well “read through” legislation before he votes. But it should be seriously considered that there is a very glaring difference between being a public servant and a servant of the Greater Dalton Chamber of Commerce.

In the same forum video, I was relieved to hear conservative candidate Scott Tidwell say “we need to do everything we can to keep Georgia from being a magnet for illegal aliens.”

Speaking for Georgia victims of the crimes perpetrated by illegals, we plead with Dalton voters to send a conservative to the state senate next year. Georgia still has more illegal aliens than does Arizona.

D.A. King

Marietta

King is president of the Georgia-based Dustin Inman Society, a nationally recognized authority on immigration and has assisted state lawmakers with immigration legislation since 2004. He is not a member of any political party.

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