FL senator: Hispanics should not get congressional district unless legal citizenship is proved

[seafan]

Well, of COURSE it's a right wing Republican.




Sen. Alan Hays, R-Umatilla

The reign of stupid, punitive arrogance in the Florida Legislature continues.


From Adam C. Smith at Tampa Bay's The Buzz:


October 20, 2011

There's been a widespread assumption that after next year's redistricting, there will be a new congressional district in the Orange-Osceola county area that favors a Hispanic representative. And there's been endless coverage in the political press about how the Hispanic vote can tilt the election and that Republicans need to gain ground among America's fast-growing minority group.

So a comment from state Sen. Alan Hays, R-Umatilla, sounded more than a little jarring at Tuesday's reapportionment committee meeting:

"Before we design a district anywhere in the state of Florida for Hispanic voters, we need to ascertain that they are citizens of the United States," Hays said. "We all know there are many Hispanic-speaking people in Florida that are not legal. And I just don't think it's right that we try to draw a district that (encompasses) people that really have no business voting anyhow."

The video is here, and Hays makes the comment at about 2:27:00.

We're awaiting a call back from Hays to clarify how he might envision checking the citizenship of more than one million Hispanic voters in Florida, or whether other ethnic groups should be verified as well.

The response has been swift and brutal.

Decrying "witch hunt" of Fla Hispanics, Dems call for GOP Sen's ouster from redistricting committee



We really miss Howard Troxler during times like these.

Happy retirement, Howard. It'll just take us a little longer without you, that's all.

[dtexdem]

1. Hey, if he's really worried, maybe Florida could just refuse the extra district.

I'm sure another state would be happy to have it. ;-)

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

2. "Hispanic-speaking" holy fuck are these people recruited to run for office

because of their stupidity? Having these many dim wits cannot be a coincidence.

[KamaAina]

3. "Hispanic-speaking people"?

What kind of language is Hispanic? Is it anything like Mexican? :dunce:

[KamaAina]

4. There is no constitutional basis for this

come to think of it, there's no constitutional basis for Congressional districts at all. Here's the final word on the subject:

http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html#A1Sec2

The House of Representatives shall be composed of Members chosen every second Year by the People of the several States, and the Electors in each State shall have the Qualifications requisite for Electors of the most numerous Branch of the State Legislature.

No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty five Years, and been seven Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen.

(Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective Numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons.) (The previous sentence in parentheses was modified by the 14th Amendment, section 2.) The actual Enumeration shall be made within three Years after the first Meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent Term of ten Years, in such Manner as they shall by Law direct. The Number of Representatives shall not exceed one for every thirty Thousand, but each State shall have at Least one Representative; and until such enumeration shall be made, the State of New Hampshire shall be entitled to chuse three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode Island and Providence Plantations one, Connecticut five, New York six, New Jersey four, Pennsylvania eight, Delaware one, Maryland six, Virginia ten, North Carolina five, South Carolina five and Georgia three.

When vacancies happen in the Representation from any State, the Executive Authority thereof shall issue Writs of Election to fill such Vacancies.

The House of Representatives shall chuse their Speaker and other Officers; and shall have the sole Power of Impeachment.

Nothing in there about citizenship OR districts.

[HockeyMom]

5. They don't want Democrats taking their seats away

That's what they do in Naples. The Hispanic, poor, area of Golden Gate is districted into Miami on the opposite coast. Nothing AT ALL to do with illegals. Now they want to send even more areas of Naples into Mimai. It's about keepng THEIR party in power; nothing more. At the rate they are going, only the very RICH, REPUBLICAN parts of Naples will be "voting" in Naples.

[indepat]

6. Yeah, we should verify the freakin' citizenship of everyone living in every congressional district

in the country before any districts are re-drawn, just has always been the case for 200 years. :patriot: