Published 12-11-07
This past Tuesday alongside other area lawmakers I hosted a town hall event so that Denton County residents could have the opportunity to review accomplishments from this past legislative session and talk about their priorities for the future.
This past Tuesday alongside other area lawmakers I hosted a town hall event so that Denton County residents could have the opportunity to review accomplishments from this past legislative session and talk about their priorities for the future. During that event illegal immigration reform emerged as the most popular topic of discussion.
I have included excerpts from the Flower Mound Leader article covering the town hall event below and encourage you to contact my capitol office at 512-463-0688 for more information on initiatives to combat illegal immigration including the Conservative Coalition’s plan for addressing illegal immigration in Texas.
Illegal immigration tops town hall discussion
By Chris Roark Staff Writer
By Chris Roark Staff Writer
Texas Representative Tan Parker R-District 63 said illegal immigration is the top concern in Texas right now and at Tuesday’s town hall meeting at the Flower Mound Public Library the issue dominated the conversation.
“Tonight echoes what I hear and see everyday” Parker said of the public’s opinion on illegal immigration. “We need to realize the repercussions of illegal immigration into the state and the country. It drains our education system and our criminal justice system. Diversity is our strength but the key is to immigrate to Texas in a legal fashion.”
“Tonight echoes what I hear and see everyday” Parker said of the public’s opinion on illegal immigration. “We need to realize the repercussions of illegal immigration into the state and the country. It drains our education system and our criminal justice system. Diversity is our strength but the key is to immigrate to Texas in a legal fashion.”
Among the recommendations Parker plans to push this session is requiring proof of identification to vote in Texas verifying citizenship for all applicants for public benefits placing citizenship status on drivers licenses and deploying the Texas National Guard to secure the state’s border.
When asked who agreed with those ideas nearly everyone in the room raised their hand.“(Their) plans for the 81st assembly appear to be sound thoughtful and to have promise” said Flower Mound resident Gavin Poston. “They certainly merit discussion. We have an illegal immigration problem.”
Parker said Tuesday’s meeting was the 10th of its kind in recent weeks and the issue has been the most talked about one at all of them.
“As it should be” said Dianne Edmondson chairman for the Denton County Republican Party. “I love the nine points he addressed. I’ve studied the laws from other states and I think this is a good compilation of those.”
Parker stressed the importance of government and businesses working together since the idea of scanning identification cards to find out people’s legal status has been brought up. One resident pointed out how quickly information is generated simply by swiping a credit card.
“Someone asked if government and corporations are working together that pertain to identification” Parker said. “We need to take techniques that are already in place. That concept is applicable to all policies.”
Other ideas Parker has regarding stopping illegal immigration include denying punitive damages to illegal immigrants imposing criminal penalties on employers who knowingly hire them and denying bail to them and seizing their assets to cover court costs.
“If we make it unattractive to come here illegally they’ll go back home” Edmondson said.
