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MDE EXCLUSIVE: HATCH TELLS POLICE OFFICERS GROUP HE ADMIRES ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS
By Michael B. Brodkorb | June 15, 2006
A rock-solid source tells MDE that Attorney General Mike Hatch made some shocking statements in remarks at the 84th Annual Minnesota Police & Peace Officers Association (MPPOA) Convention in Alexandria, MN this past Monday, June 12.
Hatch apparently told the assembled law enforcement officers that he admires illegal immigrants and that if he were in their shoes, he would do the same thing and illegally enter the United States.
This raises a number of significant questions about Mike Hatch:
1) Does Hatch admire the approximately 85,000 illegal immigrants who have come to Minnesota and are a big drain on our social services, costing Minnesota taxpayers more than $100 million per year to provide benefits for people here illegally?
2) As the state's top law enforcement officer, does this mean Hatch does not believe in enforcing federal and state immigration laws?
3) Are there other laws that Hatch thinks are improper and what other criminals does he admire?
There were a number of people in attendance at the MPPOA conference, so I'd be interested in hearing from additional individuals who heard Hatch make these comments. If you have an audio or videotape, I'd be interested in that too, so everyone can hear exactly what Mike Hatch thinks about illegal immigrants.
Remember, we're talking about illegal, not legal, immigrants. My ancestors, just like virtually all of yours, were immigrants to this country. But they came here legally, followed the rules and became U.S. citizens.
On the other hand, Attorney General Hatch now says that he admires lawbreakers who enter our country illegally, participate in an exploitive and underground economy, utilize fake identity documents and put a major strain on state budgets and taxpayers.
Next time you see Hatch, ask him why he admires people who are breaking the law and if that's an appropriate position for our Attorney General, or even worse, for someone who wants to be Governor.
Topics: Mike Hatch | 14 Comments »
14 Responses to “MDE EXCLUSIVE: HATCH TELLS POLICE OFFICERS GROUP HE ADMIRES ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS”
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June 15th, 2006 at 4:51 pm
Nice work MDE. Hatch has been trying to be all things to all people, so it is nice to see him get pinned down on an issue. It is troubling that he would take such a ludicrous possition, and this is going to be a very serious issue in this race. Keep up the great work.
June 15th, 2006 at 4:53 pm
Oh my, this is pretty incredible. You missed one question that Hatch, now more than ever, needs to quickly answer. What is Mr. Hatch’s opinion on these ridiculous sanctuary laws that the lefties in Minneapolis thrust upon the people. My guess is that his answer to the question will depend on the audience.
June 15th, 2006 at 4:55 pm
We fight every day up here to try to convince rural voters that we are not some collection of crazy left-wing interests. This type of stuff kills us. There is a reason they are called “illegal aliens,” as what they are doing is “illegal.” Hatch owes us an explaination on these comments.
June 15th, 2006 at 4:58 pm
I had heard rumors from other law enforcement that he made this comment. It will be interesting to see if Mr. Hatch will try to deny he said this. I hope before he denies it, he remembers how Dean Johnson got caught in a lie a few months back. That damn technology. Those digital recorders are smaller and smaller.
June 15th, 2006 at 5:41 pm
Is this for real? What a joke, I hope someone taped his speech!!!
June 15th, 2006 at 5:42 pm
Wow, Republicans bashing Democrats on pointless immigration issues. Perhaps the Republican motto should be “No tired campaign trick left behind.”
I can’t speak for Hatch, but I can say a few things. First, your “costing taxpayers $100 million” is complete B.S. and you are certainly smart enough to know it. Just about everybody refuted that study from the Pawlenty administration. Most real studies show no net gain or loss from illegal immigrants for the most part.
And yes, I do admire the work ethic of illegal immigrants, working 12 or 16 hours a day doing crap day labor work or slicing carcasses, often not getting paid at all. It’s a lot more than you or I are doing in our air-conditioned offices.
If I were in Mexico, would I cross the border? Probably, and so would you. No two countries in the world that share a border have such a huge economic disparity as the U.S. and Mexico, so if I cared about improving the lives of myself and my family (and I do), then crossing the border is something I would probably do if I could. Can you honestly say that you would not do the same?
Finally, I really do hope that all fo the Brodkorbs did have all of their papers when they immigated. It would be too bad if you were making false statements to score political points.
June 15th, 2006 at 5:46 pm
[...] MDE has the goods on this, but Hatch said on Monday that he admires illegal immigrants. Even worse he says that if he were in their shoes he would do the same thing and sneak into this country!!! [...]
June 15th, 2006 at 6:28 pm
You are saying that Mike Hatch admires people who want to better themselves?
THE HORROR!!!!
What next? Will he say he prefers clean drinking water and safe roads?
June 15th, 2006 at 10:46 pm
Mike Hatch has totally dissed Stonewall DFL. It will be interesting to see whether they endorse him.
http://lloydletta.blogspot.com/2006/06/mike-hatch-avoids-stonewall-dfl-caucus.html
June 16th, 2006 at 12:51 am
Keep it up Roving(STRIB) Reporter and MN Politics !
With every new post you show everybody what BLIND, STUPID DFL HACKS YOU BOTH ARE !
June 16th, 2006 at 5:42 am
Since the DFL party and Mike Hatch only care about getting votes and not where or how they are cast, they can never be trusted to enforce Immigration law. If they won’t enforce those laws, then what other law will they ignore?
June 16th, 2006 at 7:23 am
I am with Hatch. If your family is starved, kids are ill, and can’t make ends meet, you bet I would want to come to America by any means possible. Anybody who says otherwise is lying if they say the do not want something more. I do not agree that the right way to get here is to come illegally, but for folks in dire straights it is a last resort. I am sure they would rather be able to come lawfully.
No matter where people are from the promise of America equals hope for the hopeless.
June 16th, 2006 at 10:10 am
So Demrock wants anyone from Mexico to be able to come to the U.S. to better their lives, legally or not. I wonder if Demrock supports the betterment of the lives of Iraqis by getting rid of Saddam?
June 16th, 2006 at 12:11 pm
Hatch never said that he thinks anyone should be able to enter the US. What he said is, if he found himself in a desperate situation where he had to choose between his family starving and breaking the law to get into the US, the fear of committing one criminal act would not be enough to let his kids starve. Admiring someone who is willing to work that hard for family is truly admirable.
And why would the Minnesota Governor need to even have a position on this issue? Do you frequently see packs of feral toque wearing canadian immigrants roving the streets with hockey sticks robbing people of their back bacon?