Renee Feltz and Stokely Baksh report on D.C.'s efforts to limit cooperation with federal officials on immigration detention at the same time that Arizona and other states get tougher. Two weeks ago, Arizona passed the nation's strictest immigration law, SB 1070, which requires local police to demand proof of citizenship if they suspect a person is undocumented. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Assistant Secretary John Morton condemned the measure, saying it would get in the way of federal programs designed to target, "identify, and remove criminal aliens." One of these programs, Secure Communities, is already in place in seven Arizona counties, and more than 150 other jurisdictions nationwide. It operates by enlisting states to run arrest data from local jails against a federal database of immigration records. ICE agents then use the system to deport people living in the country illegally and legal residents with criminal convictions. The program has been expanding -- in just the past year, 20 states have signed on -- but on Tuesday it hit a roadblock in the nation's capital. D.C. City Council members voted unanimously to introduce a bill that would make the District the first jurisdiction in the country to ban Secure Communities. "This is like something out of George Orwell. This is really 'insecure communities,'" argues District Council member Jim Graham, who represents an area that is home to many of the District's immigrants. Several Council members said the program could lead to more laws like the one passed in Arizona, which they described as "horrific." KEEP READING . . .
