Arizona's new immigration law

The Federal government was doing piss-all to enforce the standing immigration laws so the state of Arizona got fed up and instituted its own law. Over 60% of Arizona citizens are very happy with the law and the law specifically prohibits profiling and stopping people to check their immigration status. The persons in question must already be in "lawful contact" (ie: traffic stop, criminal arrest, etc...) before the status check can be made. The text of the bill is here (amendments are in blue capitals) and some notes on changes can be found here. The entire thing is just a couple pages and very clearly written. Looks like a lot of people haven't read the law - from Byron York at The Washington Examiner:

Top 10 dumbest things said about the Arizona immigration law
The last few days have seen an extraordinary outburst of criticism of Arizona�s new immigration law. In the nation�s elite media outlets, its most respected commentators are portraying the law as an act of police-state repression. Many, if not all, of the specific criticisms can be refuted simply by reading the law itself, but others are more generalized criticisms of immigration enforcement. In any event, it�s hard to choose the most over-the-top and wrongheaded commentary on the law, but here are ten choices, in no particular order. (If you don�t know why a particular statement is wrong, you can check here, and here, and here, and here.)

1. �The statute requires police officers to stop and question anyone who looks like an illegal immigrant.�
� New York Times editorial

2. �As the Arizona abomination makes clear, there is a desperate need for federal immigration action to stop the country from turning into a nation of vigilantes suspicious of anybody with dark skin.�
� Dana Milbank, Washington Post

And two more:

9. �You can imagine, if you are a Hispanic American in Arizona�suddenly, if you don�t have your papers and you took your kid out to get ice cream, you�re going to be harassed.�
� President Barack Obama

10. �This week, Arizona signed the toughest illegal immigration law in the country which will allow police to demand identification papers from anyone they suspect is in the country illegally. I know there�s some people in Arizona worried that Obama is acting like Hitler, but could we all agree that there�s nothing more Nazi than saying �Show me your papers?� There�s never been a World War II movie that didn�t include the line �show me your papers.� It�s their catchphrase. Every time someone says �show me your papers,� Hitler�s family gets a residual check. So heads up, Arizona; that�s fascism. I know, I know, it�s a dry fascism, but it�s still fascism.�
� Seth Myers, �Saturday Night Live�

A big hat tip to The Blogmocracy for the link...