Ironic that Sooners Are Fighting Illegal Immigrants

Laura Kellams of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette writes today that Oklahoma State Representative Randy Terrill (R-Moore), the sponsor of the Oklahoma Taxpayer and Citizen Protection Act that cracks down on hiring illegal aliens, wants to make sure his state is for real American white people only. He said he hopes the legislation shoos his state’s illegal alien population to pack up and move to places like Arkansas. “I hope we export every illegal alien to surrounding states," Terrill said, “if their state legislators don’t have the backbone to fill the void left by the federal government.”

Arkansas State Representative Rick Green (R-Van Buren), said he’d be surprised if people who flee Oklahoma aren’t moving to Northwest Arkansas to work in construction or poultry plants. “What we don’t want is Arkansas to say, ‘Come here. It’s a safe haven because we don’t take the law seriously like Tennessee and Oklahoma and Georgia.’” A new Tennessee law calls for suspension of business licenses for employers who knowingly hire illegal aliens. Arkansas State Representative Jon Woods (R-Springdale) and other area Republicans have given up on President Bush (R-Broward) and Congressman Boozman (R-Pinnacle) doing anything to stop illegal immigration and are taking the initiative by showboating and holding meaningless publicity hearings at the state capitol.

For some strange reason, Kellams must have interviewed Archie Schaffer III, a senior vice president for Springdale-based Tyson Foods Inc. He said the company hasn’t seen any influx of workers in recent months and doubts any state legislation would have such an effect. “As a matter of fact, we currently have several hundred open positions in western and northwestern Arkansas,” he said.

I don’t get it. Why would an “influx of workers” or “open positions” at Tyson Foods have anything to do with or be included in a story about illegal immigrants? John Tyson, presidente y máximo ejecutivo de Tyson Foods, and other Tyson executives do not condone hiring undocumented workers and have a “zero tolerance” policy in their plants. The reporter should have interviewed someone at George’s Inc or Wal-Mart.