Governor’s 2nd Term To Focus On Helping Illegal Immigrants

The newly reelected governor who created a special council to help illegal immigrants integrate into society promises to spend his second term pushing for measures to benefit undocumented aliens in his state.

Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, former Clinton Administration official, assured open borders advocates this week that he’ll advance an ambitious agenda launched during his first term to assist illegal aliens. That means implementing all of the policy recommendations—labeled New Americans Agenda—made by his special immigration committee last year.

In all, the governor’s council offered 131 ideas aimed at integrating immigrants and refugees into the civic and economic life of the Commonwealth. The policy suggestions cover civil rights, education, employment and workforce development, access to state services and housing assistance.

Among the key recommendations is granting illegal immigrants drivers’ licenses and discounted in-state-tuition at public colleges and universities even though the Massachusetts legislature solidly rejected the tuition measure a few years ago. Regardless, Deval is committed to implementing his immigration panel’s recommendations before his second term expires.

“Now, as we stand on the threshold of another four years, I want to commit to you that we will implement this report in its entirety, working with you over the next several years,’’ Patrick told a cheering crowd of immigration advocates this week.

Immediately upon taking office in 2007, Deval, who was in charge of civil rights in Bill Clinton’s Justice Department, killed a policy that allowed state troopers to detain undocumented aliens. The governor has repeatedly come under fire for his other leftwing policies, including spending $430,000 to give welfare recipients free cars as an incentive to find work and a law to protect convicted criminals by concealing their records from potential employers and landlords.

Last year Deval’s lawyer wife accused the state’s largest newspaper of racism for describing her husband’s pricey luxury sedan as “tricked out.” The article pointed out that the taxpayer-financed vehicle, a Cadillac DeVille, was a departure from the less expensive model used by Deval’s predecessor. First Lady Diane Patrick, a partner at a major global law firm, said the term “tricked out” is not only racist but inaccurate because her husband’s fancy state car doesn’t have boom boxes or speakers on the outside.