2008 NC Senate Debate: on Immigration


Elizabeth Dole: Help sheriffs identify illegal immigrants among suspects

Dole has aired TV ads touting her work with sheriffs on a program that helps them identify illegal immigrants among criminal suspects.

Hagan erred in faulting that program as an “unfunded federal mandate.” Dole corrected: It’s neither mandatory nor unfunded. But she went on to accuse Hagan, falsely, of voting in the legislature to make it easier for illegal immigrants to get driver’s licenses. Several times, Democrats killed measures to make it tougher before eventually approving stronger requirements, but Hagan never eased restrictions.

Dole insisted Hagan did vote on one occasion to make it easier for illegal immigrants to obtain a North Carolina driver’s license, citing the 2001 state appropriations act.

Hagan responded that that “measure was attached to the 2001 state budget bill and did not require people to prove that they were in the country legally, but did require people to show proof of residency and taxpayer identification. Hagan voted for the budget.”

Source: 2008 N.C. Senate Debate reported in Greensboro News-Record Jun 25, 2008

Kay Hagan: ID’ing illegal immigrants is an unfunded federal mandate

Dole has aired TV ads touting her work with sheriffs on a program that helps them identify illegal immigrants among criminal suspects.

Hagan erred in faulting that program as an “unfunded federal mandate.” Dole corrected: It’s neither mandatory nor unfunded. But she went on to accuse Hagan, falsely, of voting in the legislature to make it easier for illegal immigrants to get driver’s licenses. Several times, Democrats killed measures to make it tougher before eventually approving stronger requirements, but Hagan never eased restrictions.

Dole insisted Hagan did vote on one occasion to make it easier for illegal immigrants to obtain a North Carolina driver’s license, citing the 2001 state appropriations act.

Hagan responded that that “measure was attached to the 2001 state budget bill and did not require people to prove that they were in the country legally, but did require people to show proof of residency and taxpayer identification. Hagan voted for the budget.”

Source: 2008 N.C. Senate Debate reported in Greensboro News-Record Jun 25, 2008

Elizabeth Dole: Crackdown on illegal immigrants who commit crimes

The issue of immigration created sparks. Dole has made a crackdown on illegal immigrants who commit crimes a major thrust of her re-election campaign. She has helped put together a program with local sheriffs, allowing them to identify and begin deportation proceedings against people who entered the country without proper authority.

But Hagan suggested that Dole did not have much to boast about. “This is another example of where Washington is broken,” Hagan said. “Senator Dole has been in Washington for over 40 years. This problem has been there for a very long time. Since the Bush administration began, we currently have another five million illegal immigrants in this country.“

Hagan said she supported increased border security and opposed amnesty. But she said immigration was really a federal problem, rather than a state one and dismissed the sheriffs’ program as ”patchwork“ program and an unfunded federal mandate on the states.

Source: 2008 N.C. Senate Debate reported in Raleigh News & Observer Jun 22, 2008

Kay Hagan: Supports increased border security and opposes amnesty

The issue of immigration created sparks. Dole has made a crackdown on illegal immigrants who commit crimes a major thrust of her re-election campaign. She has helped put together a program with local sheriffs, allowing them to identify and begin deportation proceedings against people who entered the country without proper authority.

But Hagan suggested that Dole did not have much to boast about. “This is another example of where Washington is broken,” Hagan said. “Senator Dole has been in Washington for over 40 years. This problem has been there for a very long time. Since the Bush administration began, we currently have another five million illegal immigrants in this country.“

Hagan said she supported increased border security and opposed amnesty. But she said immigration was really a federal problem, rather than a state one and dismissed the sheriffs’ program as ”patchwork“ program and an unfunded federal mandate on the states.

Source: 2008 N.C. Senate Debate reported in Raleigh News & Observer Jun 22, 2008

Elizabeth Dole: Link local sheriffs to federal immigration tools

Sen. Dole launched a campaign ad that touts her work on illegal immigration. The ad includes clips from a number of sheriffs who praise Dole for helping link them to federal immigration tools.

Dole’s advertisement comes one day after Hagan met with six sheriffs to discuss immigration. Hagan said she supports the idea of county-federal partnerships that put illegal immigrants who commit crimes on the path to deportation. But unlike other candidates for top statewide office, including Dole, Hagan told a group of sheriffs that she has some major concerns about how officials are proceeding with the program. “The citizens of North Carolina pay federal taxes,” Hagan told a half-dozen sheriffs during a round-table in Raleigh. “Immigration is certainly a federal issue, and the federal government cannot be throwing another unfunded federal mandate down on us at the state level.”

Dole has been a leading advocate for the program.

Source: 2008 N.C. Senate Debate: ad analysis on WRAL May 28, 2008

Kay Hagan: Deportation program is an unfunded federal mandate

Sen. Dole launched a campaign ad that touts her work on illegal immigration. The ad includes clips from a number of sheriffs who praise Dole for helping link them to federal immigration tools.

Dole’s advertisement comes one day after Hagan met with six sheriffs to discuss immigration. Hagan said she supports the idea of county-federal partnerships that put illegal immigrants who commit crimes on the path to deportation. But unlike other candidates for top statewide office, including Dole, Hagan told a group of sheriffs that she has some major concerns about how officials are proceeding with the program. “The citizens of North Carolina pay federal taxes,” Hagan told a half-dozen sheriffs during a round-table in Raleigh. “Immigration is certainly a federal issue, and the federal government cannot be throwing another unfunded federal mandate down on us at the state level.”

Dole has been a leading advocate for the program.

Source: 2008 N.C. Senate Debate: ad analysis on WRAL May 28, 2008

Kay Hagan: Lack of immigration system is why we have unsecured border

Hagan said she wants to focus on securing borders and making sure that employers are hiring legal workers. “The whole way we handle immigration in this country is flawed,” Hagan said. “We don’t have an immigration system, and that’s why we have a border that’s not secured.”
Source: 2008 N.C. Senate Debate: ad analysis on WRAL May 28, 2008

  • The above quotations are from 2008 North Carolina Senate Debate between Elizabeth Dole and Kay Hagan.
  • Click here for definitions & background information on Immigration.
  • Click here for other issues (main summary page).
  • Click here for more quotes by Elizabeth Dole on Immigration.
  • Click here for more quotes by Kay Hagan on Immigration.
Candidates and political leaders on Immigration:

Retired Senate as of Jan. 2015:
GA:Chambliss(R)
IA:Harkin(D)
MI:Levin(D)
MT:Baucus(D)
NE:Johanns(R)
OK:Coburn(R)
SD:Johnson(D)
WV:Rockefeller(D)

Resigned from 113th House:
AL-1:Jo Bonner(R)
FL-19:Trey Radel(R)
LA-5:Rod Alexander(R)
MA-5:Ed Markey(D)
MO-9:Jo Ann Emerson(R)
NC-12:Melvin Watt(D)
SC-1:Tim Scott(R)
Retired House to run for Senate or Governor:
AR-4:Tom Cotton(R)
GA-1:Jack Kingston(R)
GA-10:Paul Broun(R)
GA-11:Phil Gingrey(R)
HI-1:Colleen Hanabusa(D)
IA-1:Bruce Braley(D)
LA-6:Bill Cassidy(R)
ME-2:Mike Michaud(D)
MI-14:Gary Peters(D)
MT-0:Steve Daines(R)
OK-5:James Lankford(R)
PA-13:Allyson Schwartz(D)
TX-36:Steve Stockman(R)
WV-2:Shelley Capito(R)
Retired House as of Jan. 2015:
AL-6:Spencer Bachus(R)
AR-2:Tim Griffin(R)
CA-11:George Miller(D)
CA-25:Howard McKeon(R)
CA-33:Henry Waxman(D)
CA-45:John Campbell(R)
IA-3:Tom Latham(R)
MN-6:Michele Bachmann(R)
NC-6:Howard Coble(R)
NC-7:Mike McIntyre(D)
NJ-3:Jon Runyan(R)
NY-4:Carolyn McCarthy(D)
NY-21:Bill Owens(D)
PA-6:Jim Gerlach(R)
UT-4:Jim Matheson(D)
VA-8:Jim Moran(D)
VA-10:Frank Wolf(R)
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Page last updated: Dec 02, 2018