Arizona Lawmaker Reviving Plans for Controversial Border Fence
Arizona State Sen. Steve Smith says in the coming weeks a plan to build Arizona’s controversial border fence will be unveiled.
In 2011, Smith sponsored a bill allowing the state use inmate labor and private donations to build a border fence on private and government land.
We profiled Smith in 2011, when he was kicking off his fundraising tour for the fence:
“Here’s the biggest issue in everything related to the border: If we truly wanted to secure the border, we could,” Smith said. “The problem is, we don’t.” Smith, on the other hand, does.
To this end, he recently announced the web headquarters for his fundraising campaign: buildtheborderfence.com. His first goal is $50 million.
In the first 17 hours the site raised more than $39,000. But in the subsequent years, donations have dried up. As of April 3, 2013 the site has raised a little more than $193,000 — quite short of its original goal.
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More: Arizona Lawmaker Reviving Plans for Controversial Border Fence
Here’s some more from that 2011 profile mentioned above:
The line-up of elected officials picked to introduce state Senator Steve Smith at his first border fence fundraiser July 25 was a veritable Who’s Who of Arizona’s most outspoken immigration-enforcement advocates: Attorney General Tom Horne, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, and state Senate President Russell Pearce. Of the latter, Smith told the crowd there’s no one he would rather model his political career after more.
“When I had this idea of running,” Smith said. “I looked through the whole legislature and I said: ‘Well, who do I identify with? Who do I want to talk to, who do I want advice from?’ I asked one person. I asked Russell Pearce.”
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Russell Pearce was recalled later that year. I hope Smith’s career follows suit.
Not much new in this article, but it provides an opportunity to post this awesome photo: