Vehicle-impound initiatives test Colorado ballot system
Related News
- 07/13/10 — Nevada Immigration Ballot Initiative Fails
- 07/09/10 — Secure Arkansas petitions short of signatures
- 05/18/10 — Group Hopes To Get Initiative On Nov. Ballot
- 03/12/10 — Immigration bill clears Idaho Senate committee
- 12/04/09 — Tancredo ballot measure would require employers to verify immigration status of all new hires
- More Immigration news
Colorado Independent: In the debate surrounding Colorado’s famously loose ballot initiative system, the so-called impound initiatives introduced repeatedly in local municipalities over the past three years might serve as a test case. This year, they have been introduced in Denver and two of its suburbs, Aurora and Lakewood.
The proposed laws would require police to seize the vehicles of every unlicensed driver they stop. But the initiatives aren’t primarily about keeping the roads safe and the man behind them doesn’t live in Denver, Aurora or Lakewood.
As many know by now, the man behind the initiatives is Daniel Hayes. He lives in unincorporated Jefferson County and his initiatives are a weapon in his personal battle against illegal immigrants. Since 2005 when he first began floating his initiatives, Hayes has learned to soften his rhetoric. He has mostly stopped talking about “getting Hernandezes off the road” and the need to “send illegals home” because “something has to be done.” He talks instead about getting unlicensed drivers off the road because, if they hit you, they could bankrupt you.
Scratch the surface, though, and the old Dan Hayes comes back. In an interview, he told The Colorado Independent that it’s the people who oppose his initiatives who are the racists. “They call me the racist but let’s face it, illegal aliens are not treated the same on the highway … They don’t even get identified. They drive all they want. So I guess what [the opposition] is saying is that they don’t care. They want these people to drive without being bothered.”
To read more, click here.
Comments
There are no comments for this entry.
