Herndon, VA voters send clear message about illegal aliens in community

The voters of Herndon, VA cut a swath through their elected officials, kicking almost every one of them who supported the recently-approved “day-laborer facility” right down to the curb and then out into traffic. Reported here:

Herndon voters yesterday unseated the mayor and two Town Council members who supported a bitterly debated day-labor center for immigrant workers in a contest that emerged as a mini-referendum on the turbulent national issue of illegal immigration.

Residents replaced the incumbents with challengers who immediately called for significant changes at the center. Some want to bar public funds from being spent on the facility or restrict it to workers living in the country legally. Others want it moved to an industrial site away from the residential neighborhood where it is located.

The various “immigrant rights” groups are downplaying the results as being the acts of a single, limited community. I’m guessing they wouldn’t be so off-hand about it had it turned out the other way. The fact of the matter is that residents here feel that requiring the users of the day-laborer facility to verify their legal status isn’t too high a standard to meet. The previous elected officials didn’t listen to that viewpoint when the approval process was being done so the residents of Herndon did what democracies do: they voted them out. It’s a sign of things to come and I hope the GOP in the federal government understands that in time for November.

Seasons in DC

I’m enjoying something at this very moment that is a rarity in DC: a lovely spring day with temperatures in the low 70′s, humidity at something under 120%, and a relatively quiet moment with a good cup of coffee. And, just in case you think this sounds like anywhere else, the trio at the table immediately behind me are discussing their strategy for lobbying a bill to some congressmen this morning.

The seasons in DC: winter, rainy, construction, and Congress-in-session. Gotta love it.