Dani Joy
02-07-2005, 04:03 AM
Publication:Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette; Date:Monday, February 07, 2005 ; Section:Northwest Arkansas; Page:7
2 proposals put governor, Holt at odds
GOP leaders biding time about aid for illegal aliens
BY LAURA KELLAMS ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE
The state’s Republican leaders are watching from the sidelines as a public dispute grows between two of the party’s well-known politicians over what state government’s role should be in dealing with illegal aliens.
Gov. Mike Huckabee and state Sen. Jim Holt of Springdale, who surprised political observers last November with his 44 percent showing as the GOP U.S. Senate nominee against Democratic incumbent Blanche Lincoln’s 56 percent, have put forward legislative proposals that have opposite aims on immigration.
Huckabee has proposed extending scholarship eligibility and in-state tuition rates to illegal aliens who graduate from Arkansas high schools; Holt’s Senate Bill 206 would prevent that by requiring proof of citizenship to receive state services that aren’t federally mandated and to register to vote.
Neither proposal has gained much momentum at the state Capitol, so far. Huckabee’s has yet to be filed as a bill, and Holt said he plans to revamp SB206 before seeking committee approval. He wants to split it into two bills, one dealing with state aid and the other with adoption of stricter identification requirements for voter registration.
Huckabee has roundly criticized Holt’s proposal, calling it "demagoguery" and unnecessary and bad for the state’s economy. Publicly, he’s discussed it more than any other legislative proposal.
Sen. Kim Hendren, RGravette, said last week that someone needs to remind Huckabee that such criticism should be "all in the family" and not made in such a public way.
Observing all this are Republican legislators and party officials, who said last week they’re not taking sides. But in interviews, they were quicker to praise Huckabee and his proposal than to endorse Holt or the ideas outlined in SB206. Clint Reed of Greenbrier, executive director of the Republican Party of Arkansas, said he wouldn’t comment on the merits of either proposal but said the party appreciates Huckabee for "his stand," pointing out that Republicans were the party of Abraham Lincoln, who signed the Emancipation Proclamation that freed the slaves during the Civil War.
"We respect the differences in our party as it relates to immigration. However, our prevailing sentiment is we are a compassionate party that gives opportunities to those who are less fortunate, especially as it relates to children," Reed said.
Huckabee has taken particular aim at what he sees would be the result of SB206: cancellation of a state program that offers prenatal care to legal and illegal aliens. He said that’s an "anti-life" stance because the state should be taking care of the "citizen" in an illegal alien’s womb.
But Holt, who like Huckabee is staunchly against abortion, denies that his bill would prevent prenatal care for illegal aliens. He said that’s because of the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act of 1986. The law requires hospitals to provide labor and delivery services, and some hospitals have interpreted that to include prenatal care if a doctor says it’s needed, including doctor visits to check on the health of the mother and baby.
"Why does the government have to come in and dictate who needs prenatal care? That’s like the government trying to be a physician," Holt said. "That’s not the government’s place."
The state’s program doesn’t require anyone to receive prenatal care but makes it available.
Huckabee, on the other hand, said it’s important to offer prenatal care to all Medicaid-eligible immigrants because the babies born will be eligible for the state’s ARKids First Medicaid program and it’s cheaper to offer prenatal care than to have a child to spend one day in an intensive care unit that might have been averted by prenatal care.
No one’s quite sure what would be the effect of SB206 on the Department of Human Services’ prenatal care program or any other state program. Holt sought an opinion from Attorney General Mike Beebe about what state programs would be affected if the bill became law. Beebe hasn’t issued an opinion yet.
Huckabee’s argument on the prenatal care question has convinced several Republicans.
"Denying services in that situation is wrong," said Rep. Keven Anderson, R-Rogers.
He doesn’t necessarily like the idea of Huckabee’s scholarship and tuition proposal, however. He said that’s rewarding people who cut in line in front of legal immigrants.
Rep. Doug Matayo, RSpringdale, who represents a fairly conservative district (it used to be Holt’s when he was in the state House) with a large immigrant community, said he had a "sketchy" reaction at first to Huckabee’s idea of scholarship eligibility for illegal aliens. But he said he and many fellow Republicans have warmed to the idea because there’s talk of making sure the law would require those who are eligible for scholarships to have begun the process of applying to become citizens.
"Something like that makes it a lot more palatable to a group of Republicans," he said.
Huckabee told listeners to a radio call-in show last week that keeping immigrant children out of college because they’re illegal would be like charging kids for being in the car when their dad is speeding.
"You don’t charge the children with the crime of the father," he said.
Matayo, who is the governor’s floor leader in the House, said he’s been "stunned" to receive very few calls or e-mails about either Huckabee’s or Holt’s proposal.
It’s not been so quiet at the governor’s office, where Huckabee said he’s received many, many calls and e-mails on the subject, both agreeing and disagreeing with his stance. Rex Nelson, his spokesman, said the calls and letters haven’t yet reached the all-time high, which was during the debate over whether to move some Razorback football games from Little Rock to Fayetteville.
Asked if he would veto the legislation in the event the Legislature passed it, Huckabee hinted that he would. He said it’s his long-standing policy not to discuss whether he’ll veto something.
"I’ve made myself pretty clear on the subject. You can probably draw your own conclusions," he said.
Holt said if his proposal doesn’t succeed at the Capitol, he’ll try to go directly to the voters through the initiative process. He said one reason he came up with the proposal was that he heard about it constantly on the campaign trail. That’s because Arkansans recognize there’s a problem, he said.
"For us to say there’s not a problem with illegals here in the state is sticking our heads in the sand," Holt said.
Rep. Michael Lamoureux, RRussellville, the minority leader in the state House, said many legislators and their constituents believe the state should do something to address illegal immigration. Lamoureux said a different approach would be the bill he’s signed onto by Rep. Jeremy Hutchinson, RLittle Rock, which would allow the Arkansas State Police to reach an agreement with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to train troopers to serve as immigration officers. "That’s a middle-of-the-road approach from maybe where the governor’s at and where Sen. Holt’s at. I think that’s where most Arkansans are," Lamoureux said. "This transcends the Republican Party. Everybody I go to church with has a different opinion on this issue."
He said the House Republican caucus has not discussed either Holt’s or Huckabee’s proposals, nor has the Senate Republican caucus.
Lamoureux said that personally, at least from what he’s heard, he likes Huckabee’s idea of extending financial-aid eligibility to illegal aliens.
"We’re going to have a large Hispanic population. We’re probably going to want to have some Hispanic teachers, some Hispanic nurses," he said. "Anybody who doesn’t approve of that probably wishes that we could not have the population here anyway, and that’s just not reality."
But Anderson of Rogers said he doesn’t like the idea because illegal aliens are by definition jumping ahead of those who would enter the United States legally.
He said those who want to be "compassionate conservatives" should empathize with illegal aliens, however.
"We need to be thankful that we live in a country that people are not trying to get out of, that they’re trying to get into," he said. "In their situation we might be trying to do the same thing. ... But also we have to realize there’s a lot of other people who would like to be in this country, and these folks are cutting in line."
Lt. Gov. Win Rockefeller, who has made no secret that he’d like to run for governor next year, walked the line when asked where he stood on the issue.
"I haven’t seen any of the legislation either way. Once I’ve seen it, I’ll be in a better position to comment," he said.
He said Huckabee has an "interesting proposal" on college financial aid but that Holt has a point regarding stricter identification requirements for voting.
"I know full well that at no time when I was living in a foreign country would I have been permitted in any way to vote in any of their elections," Rockefeller said.
Proof of citizenship isn’t required to register to vote in Arkansas, but Huckabee said he can’t find anyone who can point to a situation where an illegal alien has voted.
A telephone message last week to Asa Hutchinson, who is widely perceived as a possible Republican gubernatorial candidate next year having resigned as a top official in the Homeland Security Department, was not returned.
2 proposals put governor, Holt at odds
GOP leaders biding time about aid for illegal aliens
BY LAURA KELLAMS ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE
The state’s Republican leaders are watching from the sidelines as a public dispute grows between two of the party’s well-known politicians over what state government’s role should be in dealing with illegal aliens.
Gov. Mike Huckabee and state Sen. Jim Holt of Springdale, who surprised political observers last November with his 44 percent showing as the GOP U.S. Senate nominee against Democratic incumbent Blanche Lincoln’s 56 percent, have put forward legislative proposals that have opposite aims on immigration.
Huckabee has proposed extending scholarship eligibility and in-state tuition rates to illegal aliens who graduate from Arkansas high schools; Holt’s Senate Bill 206 would prevent that by requiring proof of citizenship to receive state services that aren’t federally mandated and to register to vote.
Neither proposal has gained much momentum at the state Capitol, so far. Huckabee’s has yet to be filed as a bill, and Holt said he plans to revamp SB206 before seeking committee approval. He wants to split it into two bills, one dealing with state aid and the other with adoption of stricter identification requirements for voter registration.
Huckabee has roundly criticized Holt’s proposal, calling it "demagoguery" and unnecessary and bad for the state’s economy. Publicly, he’s discussed it more than any other legislative proposal.
Sen. Kim Hendren, RGravette, said last week that someone needs to remind Huckabee that such criticism should be "all in the family" and not made in such a public way.
Observing all this are Republican legislators and party officials, who said last week they’re not taking sides. But in interviews, they were quicker to praise Huckabee and his proposal than to endorse Holt or the ideas outlined in SB206. Clint Reed of Greenbrier, executive director of the Republican Party of Arkansas, said he wouldn’t comment on the merits of either proposal but said the party appreciates Huckabee for "his stand," pointing out that Republicans were the party of Abraham Lincoln, who signed the Emancipation Proclamation that freed the slaves during the Civil War.
"We respect the differences in our party as it relates to immigration. However, our prevailing sentiment is we are a compassionate party that gives opportunities to those who are less fortunate, especially as it relates to children," Reed said.
Huckabee has taken particular aim at what he sees would be the result of SB206: cancellation of a state program that offers prenatal care to legal and illegal aliens. He said that’s an "anti-life" stance because the state should be taking care of the "citizen" in an illegal alien’s womb.
But Holt, who like Huckabee is staunchly against abortion, denies that his bill would prevent prenatal care for illegal aliens. He said that’s because of the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act of 1986. The law requires hospitals to provide labor and delivery services, and some hospitals have interpreted that to include prenatal care if a doctor says it’s needed, including doctor visits to check on the health of the mother and baby.
"Why does the government have to come in and dictate who needs prenatal care? That’s like the government trying to be a physician," Holt said. "That’s not the government’s place."
The state’s program doesn’t require anyone to receive prenatal care but makes it available.
Huckabee, on the other hand, said it’s important to offer prenatal care to all Medicaid-eligible immigrants because the babies born will be eligible for the state’s ARKids First Medicaid program and it’s cheaper to offer prenatal care than to have a child to spend one day in an intensive care unit that might have been averted by prenatal care.
No one’s quite sure what would be the effect of SB206 on the Department of Human Services’ prenatal care program or any other state program. Holt sought an opinion from Attorney General Mike Beebe about what state programs would be affected if the bill became law. Beebe hasn’t issued an opinion yet.
Huckabee’s argument on the prenatal care question has convinced several Republicans.
"Denying services in that situation is wrong," said Rep. Keven Anderson, R-Rogers.
He doesn’t necessarily like the idea of Huckabee’s scholarship and tuition proposal, however. He said that’s rewarding people who cut in line in front of legal immigrants.
Rep. Doug Matayo, RSpringdale, who represents a fairly conservative district (it used to be Holt’s when he was in the state House) with a large immigrant community, said he had a "sketchy" reaction at first to Huckabee’s idea of scholarship eligibility for illegal aliens. But he said he and many fellow Republicans have warmed to the idea because there’s talk of making sure the law would require those who are eligible for scholarships to have begun the process of applying to become citizens.
"Something like that makes it a lot more palatable to a group of Republicans," he said.
Huckabee told listeners to a radio call-in show last week that keeping immigrant children out of college because they’re illegal would be like charging kids for being in the car when their dad is speeding.
"You don’t charge the children with the crime of the father," he said.
Matayo, who is the governor’s floor leader in the House, said he’s been "stunned" to receive very few calls or e-mails about either Huckabee’s or Holt’s proposal.
It’s not been so quiet at the governor’s office, where Huckabee said he’s received many, many calls and e-mails on the subject, both agreeing and disagreeing with his stance. Rex Nelson, his spokesman, said the calls and letters haven’t yet reached the all-time high, which was during the debate over whether to move some Razorback football games from Little Rock to Fayetteville.
Asked if he would veto the legislation in the event the Legislature passed it, Huckabee hinted that he would. He said it’s his long-standing policy not to discuss whether he’ll veto something.
"I’ve made myself pretty clear on the subject. You can probably draw your own conclusions," he said.
Holt said if his proposal doesn’t succeed at the Capitol, he’ll try to go directly to the voters through the initiative process. He said one reason he came up with the proposal was that he heard about it constantly on the campaign trail. That’s because Arkansans recognize there’s a problem, he said.
"For us to say there’s not a problem with illegals here in the state is sticking our heads in the sand," Holt said.
Rep. Michael Lamoureux, RRussellville, the minority leader in the state House, said many legislators and their constituents believe the state should do something to address illegal immigration. Lamoureux said a different approach would be the bill he’s signed onto by Rep. Jeremy Hutchinson, RLittle Rock, which would allow the Arkansas State Police to reach an agreement with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to train troopers to serve as immigration officers. "That’s a middle-of-the-road approach from maybe where the governor’s at and where Sen. Holt’s at. I think that’s where most Arkansans are," Lamoureux said. "This transcends the Republican Party. Everybody I go to church with has a different opinion on this issue."
He said the House Republican caucus has not discussed either Holt’s or Huckabee’s proposals, nor has the Senate Republican caucus.
Lamoureux said that personally, at least from what he’s heard, he likes Huckabee’s idea of extending financial-aid eligibility to illegal aliens.
"We’re going to have a large Hispanic population. We’re probably going to want to have some Hispanic teachers, some Hispanic nurses," he said. "Anybody who doesn’t approve of that probably wishes that we could not have the population here anyway, and that’s just not reality."
But Anderson of Rogers said he doesn’t like the idea because illegal aliens are by definition jumping ahead of those who would enter the United States legally.
He said those who want to be "compassionate conservatives" should empathize with illegal aliens, however.
"We need to be thankful that we live in a country that people are not trying to get out of, that they’re trying to get into," he said. "In their situation we might be trying to do the same thing. ... But also we have to realize there’s a lot of other people who would like to be in this country, and these folks are cutting in line."
Lt. Gov. Win Rockefeller, who has made no secret that he’d like to run for governor next year, walked the line when asked where he stood on the issue.
"I haven’t seen any of the legislation either way. Once I’ve seen it, I’ll be in a better position to comment," he said.
He said Huckabee has an "interesting proposal" on college financial aid but that Holt has a point regarding stricter identification requirements for voting.
"I know full well that at no time when I was living in a foreign country would I have been permitted in any way to vote in any of their elections," Rockefeller said.
Proof of citizenship isn’t required to register to vote in Arkansas, but Huckabee said he can’t find anyone who can point to a situation where an illegal alien has voted.
A telephone message last week to Asa Hutchinson, who is widely perceived as a possible Republican gubernatorial candidate next year having resigned as a top official in the Homeland Security Department, was not returned.