By Paul Nachman
09/26/2008
According to a wire service story in the Montgomery Advertiser, Alabama’s board of education has voted, 4 — 0, to exclude illegal aliens from attending the state’s two-year colleges, starting with the spring 2009 semester [New policy denying illegal immigrants admission to Alabama’s two-year colleges, September 25, 2008 (probably a short-lived link)]Note that this wasn’t a decision about whether or not to let illegal aliens attend at in-state tuition rates. Instead, it keeps them out of publicly-funded community colleges, period. Yay!!!
It seems like that vote was resounding, but there was one abstention, and four board members were absent, including Bob Riley, Alabama’s weasel of a Republican governor. So it’s conceivable that this excellent vote could be undone by the unheard-from five. Alabama readers should, please, keep their antennae and guards up.
(Riley earned his weasel-credentials from his chicanery regarding Alabama driver’s license exams in languages other than English. Go here and scroll down to "Court sets date for Alabama driver’s license case arguments.")
An earlier Advertiser article [cached link], from before the vote, reported:
Two-year chancellor Bradley Byrne said [the proposed measure to exclude illegal alliens] comes while the system is reviewing all of its policies and he doesn’t believe enrollment of illegal immigrants is a big problem among the colleges.Why would the nameless "opponents" object to instituting a solution for a non-existent problem? Why would having such a measure in place concern them?Opponents say the policy is unnecessary and board members should discuss it more before casting their votes.
The answer, presumably, is that the opponents anticipated large growth in the numbers of illegal-alien students. And, of course, once it got to that stage, they would argue that it’s "too disruptive" to expel all those students — their attendance would be a fait accompli.
Alabama is wise to forestall being held over a barrel in that manner.
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