Some are concerned, I think with some validity, that it may be too broad a brush.
I have to applaud the people of Arizona for, at the very least, firing a shot across the bow of the Federal government. If this succeeds as a wake up call to enforce immigration law, and secure our nation's borders, then the law is worth the trouble. It's funny how in the age of expanding federal powers, Congress isn't foaming at the mouth to use one clearly delineated to it in section 8 of the Constitution.
I don't have a problem with police officers asking to see documentation. On the very few encounters I've had with a police officer (and I'll grudgingly admit they've always had probable cause to talk to me), one of the first things they've asked for is a piece of identification. It's not beyond the scope of reasonable suspicion to think someone in a border area, who can't produce state or federal ID, is there illegally. We're talking about a license, state ID card, or social security card... ve are not ze germans asking to see your "papers." People here legally have nothing to fear: show the police officer your ID card, and they'll continue to do the same thing they've always done with it: call it in, check for warrants, and come back with it to deal with the matter at hand if nothing else pops up in your background. You don't have an ID card, or yours doesn't check out? Well...now you're in trouble....just like you would have been before this law was signed, only now the police are REQUIRED to contact the federal authorities to deal with an illegal immigrant. Requiring the federal government to do its job...accountability...amazing concepts.
As much as CNN would hate to admit it after seeing the heart breaking stories on their front page the past two days, this seems to actually be working. The Mexican President advised his citizen's to be careful travelling in AZ, as they could be "harassed and questioned without further cause at any time." Hmm...if only we could get the "tourists" from Calderon's country to go home after their "vacation" is over, this wouldn't be an issue. But it's not in his interest to stop his citizens, after all, his citizen's living up north are no longer a drain on his nation's resources, and they pump valuable greenbacks into the economy.
Another story details how a Taqueria is losing business, with no examination of said business's customer base. Whether the people who are avoiding the place are illegal immigrants or not doesn't really matter...why let facts get in the way of a good story?
http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/04/28/arizona.immigration/index.html?hpt=C2