The latest immigration furor is about unaccompanied children crossing the border from Mexico. The federal government wants to place them in local shelters while they are being processed for returned, but the Tea Party types object because, well, because. Happy to oblige them is Sheriff Paul Babeu of Pinal County, AZ, who tipped anti-immigration activists off to the planned arrival of a busload of Mexican kids coming to their community so that they could form a blockade.
Apparently Babeu’s concern for immigration status ends at the bedroom door. Babeu was accused by a former boyfriend, Jose Orozco, of threatening to reveal the fact that Orozco was undocumented when the couple ended their relationship and to have Orozco deported. An investigation cleared Babeu of the charges, but he was forced to come out and to end his campaign for a U.S. House seat.
The result of Babeu’s effort to align himself to the anti-immigration right resulted in a farce. A busload of children did indeed show up to face the blockade, allowing the protesters an opportunity to wave signs at the bus as it worked its way through the protesters. GOP congressional candidate Adam Kwasman talked about the “fear” he saw on the faces of these poor immigrant children.
Except they were kids on their way to the local YMCA day camp.
How about we take this to the next level?
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The Arizona Republic has dubbed Babeu “Sheriff Showboat.” He’s doing his best to earn the title daily.
BJ McFrisky
What’s with all the hate for the gay sheriff? Is he doing something to hurt us? Or is this just more manufactured outrage by liberals for the sake of liberalism?
DB75
@BJ McFrisky: I believe it’s the hypocrisy of his actions. He supports deporting people back to their country of origin and showing he is anti-immigrant, at the same time having a personal and sexual relationship with an undocumented immigrant.
Ogre Magi
@BJ McFrisky: this country needs more Latinos and less rednecks
BJ McFrisky
@DB75: Deporting illegals back to their country of origin is not anti-immigrant, it’s called following the law, which he has sworn to uphold. This article states that his immigration stance is more crucial to readers on this site than is his sexuality—another example that Queerty is more interested in pushing a liberal agenda than a gay one.
@Ogre Magi: . . . and fewer DOTA 2 nerds.
DB75
@BJ McFrisky: I disagree, BJ. He can’t on one side of his mouth talk about immigration and deportations and the other side take an undocumented immigrant’s organ. That’s the point.
I don’t disagree with the deportation aspect. I really don’t. What I disagree with is this man thinking he has any credibility in this issue when he’s been playing both sides. If you get what I’m saying.
Him being gay is neither here nor there. It’s his hypocrisy.
At least that’s why it’s an issue to me. I can’t speak for the silent voices of the writers and editors of Queerty.
Kieran
So much for “Free of an agenda, except that gay one”.
BJ McFrisky
@DB75: I think Queerty went after Babeu BECAUSE he’s gay, and because he doesn’t fit into their liberal way of thinking, they automatically assign him enemy status. Wouldn’t be the first time (see: Lindsay Graham, Adam Kinzinger, Aaron Schock, the number of times I’ve been flagged here for not toeing the liberal line, etc).
DB75
@BJ McFrisky: You may be right, I honestly do not know. I only know why it is an issue for me – which seemed reason enough.
I know what you are saying, though. It’s not easy being in the middle sometimes.
DuMaurier
The interesting part of the story for me is that, while I remember the huge uproar when the allegations against Babeu were made by his immigrant boyfriend, until I read this article I had no idea he’d been cleared. I thought maybe my attention span was at fault, but Googling it now, it seems the “big” media outlets I normally read didn’t have much interest in the–ahem–anti-climactic conclusion to the investigation.
yousir75
@Ogre Magi: The population of the U.S. would at least be halved if we got rid of all the rednecks. Ol’ BJ would be gone, for sure.
JCG
@ BJ McFrisky: OK, as you said: “Deporting illegals back to their country of origin is not anti-immigrant, it’s called following the law, which he has sworn to uphold.”
But he had a BF who he knew was an “illegal” yet he did nothing about it until they broke up.
By your own standards, that’s a serious breach of his oath to uphold the law.
So why are you defending someone in law enforcement who has, by your own definition, spit in the face of the very law he’s supposed to uphold?
james_in_cambridge
Another self-loathing, do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do right-wing hypocrite from the toilet State known as Arizona? You don’t say!
jss3indy
Okay…so I didn’t see if anyone had mentioned this already, so I’m sorry if I’m repeating a point here.
Why is this suddenly appearing on this site? It happened in February of 2012. Here’s the original story from the Phoenix New Times Newspaper:
http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/2012-02-16/news/paul-babeu-s-mexican-ex-lover-says-sheriff-s-attorney-threatened-him-with-deportation/
Ogre Magi
@yousir75: Sounds like a Utopia
james_in_cambridge
@yousir75: Oh to dream!
manjoguy
For many Americans, it’s not about “anti-immigrant”. It’s about “anti-criminal”. We have laws regarding border entry, and we expect those laws to be followed.
BJ McFrisky
@manjoguy: Careful there, Manjo . . . talk like that is heresy in this neighborhood, where laws are only good if they have a hardcore liberal bias.
BJ McFrisky
@Ogre Magi:
@yousir75:
Funny how you automatically assign me the label “redneck.” As a business owner from Washington, D.C., and now one living north of SF, the name hardly applies. Of course, if I were as childish as you, I could come up with a dictionary of names to retaliate with, but I’m well above that level of petulance.
Enjoy your naptime today, kids.