MAILBAG - Oct. 29, 2006

Costa Mesa mayor has fomented divisivenessAlthough I am not a Costa Mesa resident, I spend more than 12 hours a day in the city where I work. I am so happy that finally Councilman Eric Beaver, one of the closest political partners of Mayor Allan Mansoor, has decided to take his mask off. Few people know that when Mansoor and his friends submitted their first proposal, it was designed to permit the Police Department to request immigration papers for something as simple as jaywalking. Then for months Mansoor has been telling us that he is against the “criminal illegal aliens,” and he has pointed out that his reference is about the illegal immigrants who have committed a felony, not the regular undocumented immigrants who are hard-working and law-abiding people.

I am not telling anyone that Mansoor and friends are wrong about their points of view, that is up to you. I respect if people think that the immigration problem is a federal issue or if it is something that the cities have to handle. But at least now it is clear that they just do not make any distinctions between good and bad people — for them undocumented people equal gangs and crimes, and his goal is to throw them all out of the city, no matter if they are good people and they are the parents, sons and spouses of legal residents or American citizens.

If it is not divisiveness, then what does that word mean?

JORGE DELGADO

Irvine

County sheriff and mayor are doing the right workI am very appreciative of the efforts that Orange County Sheriff Mike Carona has made with regard to empowering the Orange County Sheriff’s Department to investigate the immigration status of inmates in the Orange County prison system. From an objective point of view, this really does seem like a very small step in the right direction of enforcing our laws, and indeed it seems like this procedure of checking immigration status is something that should have been done on a regular basis for the past several decades.

I do, however, understand the political consequences of Carona’s efforts, and the immense pressure that has been placed upon him by the popular (and liberal) media and by all the so-called immigrant-rights groups. The expected baseless accusations of racism have surfaced as well, and although they are worn-out crutches that have been overused and abused in the immigration debate, they can nonetheless carry a painful weight on those who suffer their blows.

The same scenario has played out for Mayor Allan Mansoor in Costa Mesa, due to his proposal for a similar program in Costa Mesa’s jails. I find it very encouraging that these two men have the courage and conviction to pursue a legal and due-process solution to our illegal immigration problem. So, for all of their efforts, and especially for their steadfast conviction throughout all of the unjustified and vicious personal and professional accusations and attacks that they have suffered, I want them to know that I support them, I applaud them, and I thank them.

DAVID WILLIAMS

Newport Beach