Illegal Aliens

The Feb. 12 editorial, "Common-Sense IDs," makes perfect sense for those who want to perpetuate illegal immigration. But for the 75% of Americans who want to end illegal immigration, the opposite is true. The matricula consular is useful in the United States only for illegal aliens, because legal immigrants have U.S. government-issued documents. Same for tourists with passports. Not only does the matricula subvert U.S. immigration laws, it is not even a secure identity document.

I couldn't agree more with Paul O'Neill's ideas ("A New Idea for Social Security," Commentary, Feb. 15). I wrote a paper for college in 1985 that proposed much the same thing, only my idea was to allow young people to take some of the interest that is earned in the 18-year maturation period and invest it in college educations, new businesses, new homes or career aspirations. The principal would remain for later retirement, but it would be a wonderful way to give every young person a leg up in the world.

The U.S. Border Patrol has arrested tens of thousands of people with criminal records, including suspected murderers, rapists and child molesters, since the agency last year installed a fingerprinting system that identifies criminals among the 1 million illegal migrants apprehended annually. The high-tech system is part of a broader effort by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to create a "virtual border" to stop terrorists and those with criminal pasts from entering the country.

Illegal immigrants are not entitled to obtain driver's licenses in Iowa, the state Supreme Court ruled in Des Moines. The court upheld a Polk County District Court judge's ruling in a lawsuit that said the state's policy violated immigrants' rights to equal protection under the U.S. Constitution. "We conclude that the practice of denying driver's licenses to illegal aliens violates none of the statutory and constitutional provisions raised by the classes," the Supreme Court ruling said.

The bright orange postcard is easy to spot on display at souvenir shops that dot Avalon: "Help! I'm marooned on Catalina Island." Goofy keepsake for most visitors, but for Avalon resident Jorge Rodriguez, 28, an illegal immigrant and construction worker who's lived on the island since he was a teenager, the card's gag has an uncanny note of accuracy. "You can't go there anymore," Rodriguez said, gesturing north to the mainland. "Since they started checking los IDs, everyone's afraid."

Federal officials announced Thursday that they had reached final agreement on a six-month program to train Los Angeles County sheriff's employees to identify jail inmates who are in the country illegally. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security program, the first of its kind in the nation, was narrowly approved by county supervisors last month. Half a dozen sheriff's employees will receive monthlong training in immigration laws and procedures so they can interview inmates about their status.

U.S. and Mexican authorities investigating a cross-border tunnel found the entrance in a middle-class residence in Mexicali, Mexico, and believe the passage ends about 100 yards north in a residential area of Calexico, Calif. U.S. federal agents asked a judge for a search warrant Monday to enter a home near the border fence with Mexico. It was the third tunnel discovered in the area in 15 months. Authorities suspect the tunnel was used to ferry drugs across the border.

An astute politician and international charmer, German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer would seem a hard man to bring down. He and his Green Party positioned themselves as the conscience of a nation, embracing environmental protection and popular liberal causes. But the snowy-haired Fischer, who a few months ago was the toast of the tabloid press as he rushed about town with his 28-year-old girlfriend, faces a scandal that jeopardizes his career.

The Supreme Court declined to consider whether a black truck driver accused in the deaths of 19 illegal immigrants was improperly singled out for a possible death sentence because of his race. Justices rejected the appeal of Tyrone Williams of Schenectady, N.Y. He is the only one of 14 indicted defendants in the case who faces the death penalty, and the first to face the possible punishment under a federal immigrant smuggling law.

A driver who hauled a tractor-trailer full of undocumented immigrants through Texas proved that he was the "most cruel and evil member" of a smuggling ring when he ignored cries from his suffocating passengers -- 19 of whom died -- a prosecutor said Tuesday in opening statements at the man's trial. Tyrone Williams, 34, faces 58 counts of harboring and transporting illegal immigrants.