Researchers with Texas Lyceum find residents of this state are about 50-50 on the value of sanctuary cities. A poll taken two weeks ago found 93% of us think it should be okay for a police officer to check a person's immigration status when they are arrested for a crime.
Texans for Sensible Immigration Policy Director Norm Adams says things have changed since the country first set immigration quotas 94 years ago.
“If you landed at Ellis Island and you came in first class, you went straight to your hotel room,” Adams says. “If you came in steerage, you had to go past a guy who looked at you and if you looked sick, you went into quarantine, but we had no quotas prior to 1923.”
Adams says it is important that immigrants go through a process before they are admitted to the country.
“We need to positively identify all of them, criminal background check,” he says, “and then require them to work only for employers who deduct and match taxes.”
Other poll results found 62 percent of Texans say immigrants help the country more than they hurt – and 93 percent say it should be okay for local police officer to check a person’s immigration status if they are arrested for a crime.