On Tuesday night, State Sen. Russell Pearce (R-Mesa) told supporters: “If being recalled is the price for keeping my promises, then so be it,” as he conceded defeat in the recall election.
Fed up with the growing threat posed by illegal aliens and drug smugglers and the federal government’s inaction, the former deputy sheriff became the chief sponsor of Arizona’s SB1070.
It would appear that Pearce’s concern for the safety of all Arizonans placed a large target on his back for those who have no respect for the law, nor any concern for public safety.
Pearce lost to liberal Republican Jerry Lewis.
The group behind the recall is known as Citizens for a Better Arizona which was formed in January 2011, apparently for the sole purpose of bringing-down Sen. Pearce.
The group’s website states: “The recall of Senate President Russell Pearce began as a loose coalition of individuals who were deeply affected by the appointment of Russell Pearce as the new President of the Senate. Based on Senator Pearce’s previous behavior and legislative record, it became apparent that Senator Pearce was unwilling to focus on the most pressing issues confronting Arizona.”
Of course, through his efforts to protect the public, Sen. Pearce made some very powerful enemies, most of them far outside of the Phoenix suburb of Mesa. The Obama administration, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and undoubtedly…the Mexican drug cartels who utilize untold numbers of so-called ‘stash houses’ in the Phoenix area in their lucrative human smuggling operations all have reason to be angry with Pearce.
In April 2010, Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer signed Senate Bill 1070 into law, which made it a crime for illegal aliens to be present in Arizona. The measure also requires local police officers to inquire into one’s immigration status if there is probable cause to do so.
The Obama administration quickly filed a lawsuit against Arizona, and SB1070 has been held up in the courts ever since.
However, it has already resulted in a massive number of illegal aliens leaving the state.
One example can be found in Arizona’s public schools, which are over-burdened with the children of illegal aliens. Since April 2010, schools have been reporting a large drop in enrollments. By late May 2010, the Balsz Elementary School District which is 75 percent Hispanic saw the parents of 70 students pull them out of school.
School District Superintendent Jeffrey Smith told USAToday that parents have been telling him, the new law is reason for them leaving.
Last year, Reuters ran a story on the explosion in yard sales throughout Arizona, as illegal aliens tried to lighten their load before leaving the state.
Mexican national, Wendi Villasenor told the Reuters reporter: “Everyone is selling up the little they have and leaving. We have no alternative. They have us cornered.”
Gov. Brewer’s spokesman, Paul Senseman, stated that while the state has no official numbers on just how many illegal aliens have left, he has heard many similar reports.
Senseman said: “If that means that fewer people are breaking the law…that is absolutely an accomplishment.”
Now for a little background on Russell Pearce, a man who has devoted most of his life to serving his community as well as his country…
When still a junior in high school, Pearce joined the Army National Guard and served with his unit for eight years, receiving an honorable discharge.
In 1970, he became a deputy with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO), serving for twenty-one years, until his retirement in 1991. During his time with the MCSO, he served in several different capacities, including with the SWAT team.
While on patrol one evening in July 1977, Pearce was shot in the chest when three suspects managed to wrestle his .357 revolver from him. Despite his wounds, Deputy Pearce shoved one of the assailants into his squad car and continued to pursue the other suspects. For his heroism he was awarded the Medal of Valor.
In 1991, Pearce became the Justice of the Peace at Maricopa County’s North Mesa Justice Court.
In 1993, Pearce returned to the MCSO as the Chief Deputy under Sheriff Joe Arpaio. Pearce then helped establish the world famous ‘tent city’ to house county inmates, saving taxpayers millions in jail expansion costs.
Pearce often told reporters: “Our soldiers live in tents, our boy scouts live in tents and they have done nothing wrong. I guess it’s ok for inmates to live in tents.”
Pearce went on to serve as the Director of the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety, lobbying for and implementing very tough DUI laws. He also served as the Director of Arizona’s Department of Motor Vehicles, before being elected to the Arizona State Senate.
Pearce was reelected in November 2010 with 57 percent of the vote and then went on to become president of the Senate.
Once upon a time, the United States was rightfully seen as ‘a nation of laws,’ in fact, it was truly what separated this country from most others throughout the world.
Unfortunately, that is no longer the case.
How can you refer ours as such a nation when our own president picks and chooses which laws he will enforce and places politics before the lives of his fellow citizens, even as they fall prey to criminal aliens on a daily basis?
It is only in today’s United States that the federal government would sue a state for attempting to protect its citizens from foreign invaders (a job which that same federal government refuses to do).
It is also only in today’s United States that a man such as Russell Pearce would be punished for simply carrying out his sworn duty to those he represents.
It has become painfully clear…anyone who tries to stand in the way of illegal immigration and return ours to ‘a nation of laws’ will face retribution by both the seen and unseen powers at be.
Sen. Pearce’s enemies have succeeded in recalling him…it is truly a sad day, not only for Arizona but for the entire nation.
Arizona has lost a rare thing indeed—a politician who placed those he represented before himself.
However, generations of law-abiding Arizonans will be thanking Pearce for many years to come.
Russell Pearce is one of this nation’s last true statesmen.
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