Numero uno

Saturday. Sofa. Coffee.

I don't have great week-end plans. But at least I am not Alabama governor Robert Bentley. He has promised that he will spend the week-end reviewing the illegal immigration bill sent to him for his signature by the Alabama legislature. Bless his heart.

I have yet been able to read the proposed law, but have read the news reports of its parts, and the boast of its primary author, Kris Kobach, Secretary of State. Not of Alabama, but of Kansas. According to Kobach, Alabama is now Number One, a phrase that does not normally trip easily over the lips of a Midwesterner.

Alabama is Number One in tough legislation regarding illegal immigration. Woo-hoo. Buy me a t-shirt. You better sell a lot.

How to deal with illegal immigrants is controversial, but let's try to put that aside for this morning. Let's take a look at what seems to be the primary focus of every other consideration in state government right now.

Alabama has no money.

When I have been in traffic court lately I have given a couple of my state trooper friends a hard time. There just aren't that many on the roads of Alabama at the same time these days. There are limitations on how many miles they can drive each shift. A driver with good timing can speed all the way across the state, or worse, and the percentages heavily favor the driver. Serious accidents occur and our Troopers doing their best are too far away to offer help or even timely investigation.

Alabama has no money.

When I have been in felony court lately I have seen defendants who a few years ago would have been destined for substantial prison time be placed on probation. I'm not complaining. It's my job to keep folks out of prison. But it wasn't my brilliance keeping them out. We have no place to incarcerate them, nor means to staff existing prisons properly.

Alabama has no money.

Teachers jobs are being cut while student population grows. Programs cannot be funded without private sources. School facilities in some places cannot keep up. In other places the facilities cannot stand up much longer without repair. All of this is happening as it becomes more important than ever to develop a skilled, educated work force. But instead of making progress, our school's struggle.

Alabama has no money.

The recent cuts in state employment reached deep into Alabama's juvenile justice system. In many smaller counties, like Blount County, the cuts by the State would reduce the staff by fifty percent. These offices were already running lean. So without getting too complex, a juvenile probation officer who was handling a hundred juveniles would now be handling two hundred juveniles, unless one of the cuts is the one administrative assistant, and then the whole thing falls apart. Juvenile officers monitor and counsel each youth according to his or her unique situation, and find resources that might be helpful. Suddenly the case load is doubled. The good news is that looking for resources takes less time than before as well, because many of them no longer exist because . . .

Alabama has no money.

The immigration law will cost a so far undiscussed huge amount of money to implement and execute. Before that it will cost money to defend in court.

We hear a lot of talk about fiscal responsibility in government. We are told we must set priorities and cut budgets accordingly.

So this is our priority? To attempt to remove illegal immigrants from our midst whether they have violated the law or not, whether they are a benefit to society or not? This is the thing that we will celebrate spending our tax money on? This is what we will find the money to do?

This is more important than our basic security and safety?

This is more important than the present and future of our children?

What is "this" that is so important anyway?

Maybe the governor will have an answer for us Monday. No wait, that's Jefferson Davis' birthday. It's a state holiday.

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