Stopping the Tide of Illegal Immigration

This is a partial transcript from "Hannity & Colmes," August 17, 2005, that has been edited for clarity.

SEAN HANNITY, HOST: Joining us now to discuss the problems with illegal immigration is Arizona gubernatorial candidate, Don Goldwater, by the way, the nephew of well-known Arizona resident, Barry Goldwater (search), former Senator Goldwater.

Thanks for being with us, Don. Look, if we want to sum this up as quickly as we can. On the border, increase in violence, increase in crime. We've got drug trafficking, the threat that a terrorist may cross the border with a weapon to use in an American city.

And then we have 50 percent of the population over my shoulder, according to a poll that came out today, that wants to be here, not there. And 21 percent are willing to come here illegally. Does that sum it up?

DON GOLDWATER, ARIZONA GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: That pretty much sums it up. We'll take the population that wants to come here legally and the others who want to come here illegally, they can stay home.

Sean, we have a problem here in Arizona that local law officials and local government and our federal officials fail to recognize that we have a border problem out here. We've had raging battles down our freeways where rival drug gangs have shot it out with themselves, endangering people. Eighty percent of all the new, you know, crime in the area has been due to illegal aliens.

HANNITY: Don, let me ask you this. You're saying 80 percent. You told me that figure earlier today.

The current governor of Arizona, a Democrat, declared a state of emergency in your state of Arizona yesterday, following Bill Richardson. Now, is this consistent with her past positions, for example, of supporting legal driver's licenses, you told me, for illegal immigrants? Or is this a political conversion, in your view?

GOLDWATER: This is a total political conversion, in my view. She has supported illegal driver's license. Proposition 200, our local proposition to deal with illegal aliens receiving government subsidies illegally to be educated, that sort of thing, she voted against that. She worked against getting the Proposition 200 passed.

When it was passed by an overwhelming majority of Arizona citizens, including, I might add, 48 percent of the Hispanic population, she, maybe not directly, but things don't happen in a vacuum — the proposition was challenged in the court.

It took nine months for different court battles to win. And I have to finally say thank you to the governor because today, she finally, under political pressure, has enacted all provisions.

(CROSSTALK)

COLMES: Don, it's Alan Colmes. We only have a short time left. Thank you for doing our show.

GOLDWATER: Thank you, Alan.

COLMES: Her spokesperson vehemently denies that she hasn't, from day one, enforced Proposition 200, that she's been behind it, she's enforced it, and she's been pounding the federal government to do its job on illegal immigration, and as you know, declared a state of emergency. So she's been on top of this issue.

GOLDWATER: Well, no, she has not been on top of this issue. I mean, she's always stated that this is a federal issue. And, Alan, she's right.

When they hit the border, it's a federal issue. But the minute they step over the border, it becomes a states issue, and it becomes a property crime issue, and it becomes a murder issue.

And she has not backed this issue at all. She's hidden behind the attorney general. She's hidden behind the ACLU. So, you know, that's great posturing on her part, but the citizens of Arizona know that that's just not true.

HANNITY: All right, Don, we're going to continue to follow the race and this very important issue. State of emergency has now been declared in your state, and we'll be on top of it.

Thanks for being with us.

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