2012, in my judgment, would be because the republicans have not put forth the best efforts. and i know the president wouldn't find how he wins but i think he would much rather win on the positives of saying, these are the reasons why i should win. the republicans got this most divisive primary, i'm sorry, campaign going for the selection in the nomination. they've savaged each other, they've gone at each other tooth and nail. they've not helped themselves at all. and still have not helped themselves. however, i wouldn't put so much weight behind that because i think in the final analysis, they will say many people, anybody but obama -- i think this election is going to come down, steve, to the independents. where are those independents going to line up? i think both of the candidates

will have the republican party, even the base, even though you've got some people in both bases expressing some degrees of angst, i don't think it's going to matter. these cross-over people in the independent ranks are going to be the differences in the election in virginia and i think in the country as well. >> so on the other side of the equation, if the president loses, if he is not re-elected, what are the reasons? >> two reasons, i think. and that is the lack of the real organization that needs to take place in terms of the values that people believe the democrats stood for, stand for, need to continue to work and fight for. sometimes maybe taking things for granted. i hope that is not the case. i would hope that there's such

strength in the party that people will see that those who might not see it now will see it coming ford eventually. now, you and i both know, steve, we've been around a long time, that you've got so long between now and election time, you can't even count it. because six months is forever. in an election. and so we've got more than that, you've got about eight months before the election. but unless things turn around, say sometime by october, the die might have already been cast. and i think if this election is lost by the president, it will be lost as a result of lack of energy, lack of excitement, lack of people believe diagnose that what was promised was not delivered upon. and to the extent that independents feel that they are not involved, that could be the cause. >> bob lichter, george mason university, let's turn to you for a moment.

>> okay. i wanted to voice another question from brian glassmaker. governor, you talked about the grassroots quality of your campaign for governor. and you could argue that barack obama had a grassroots campaign for the internet age. do you think he'll be able to recapture that grassroots insurgent quality as a candidate for re-election or is it just too hard for a president from washington for four years to run a true grassroots campaign? >> well, bob, that last part that you had is a very salient part of the question, because is he being considered a part of the problem? as it relates to the deficit, as it relates to cost of living? the inheritance of some of these problems and many of them as the democrats would tell you from the previous administration is a fact. but first of all can you hang on that?

if gas prices go up and stay up by election time, i don't care how you cut it, whether it's his fault or not, people will say he's the president now, consequently, he must have had something to do with it or he should change it. and i think you're going to have that problem. the excitement level, though, is what needs to take place. are these new voters, these young voters -- in my class that i teach in, youngsters that i run into, people that i run into this the street, i don't think they're going to vote for any other candidate. but the question is, are they going to get up early like they did before? are they going to be calling people like they did before? are they going to be hauling people like they did before? saying, come on, we got to go. are people going to get up out of their sickbeds like they did before, stand in line for hours like they did before? that's the grassroots campaign that was conducted before, the

internet campaign before, contacting people, letting them feel a part of it. has that caught on yet? i think it's beginning. but has it done so? i don't think it's gotten to that point yet. i hope it does. because that's what the president's going to need to be elected. >> we'll get our final question from the student at the university of calgary participating in the washington center program. roman, go ahead, please. >> good evening, governorer. i was wondering what your thoughts are on the rampant redistricting by republicans in the south in places like alabama and mississippi, often with the overt purpose of combining predominantly african-american areas as to gain electoral advantage by manipulating voter ratios. do you think the demographics that exist now in the south could lead to perhaps a democratic party resurgence or even a majority if congressional districts were to be subdivided into equal portions?

>> roman, thank you for the question. >> thanks. that's a very good question. that's one of the reasons where you've got to make certain that the -- whatever's happening is comporting with the law. is there diminution of the influence of the african-american vote? is looping and lumping all of the democratic candidates into black districts, does that help the democrats or does it help the republicans? they've had some efforts for steve, you know the congressional district that was attempted here in virginia, to create another district for african-americans. we only have one black congressman from virginia and i helped create that district and that has not been improved upon since. that's why earlier on in the conversation here i spoke of baker versus carr being so

important in terms of voter power, voter strength. and one man, one vote. but if you take that vote and concentrate it in areas that put all those people in one area, i don't know that that's going to create a resurgence. if republicans are doing it, i can tell you it won't. not in the south. >> i was going to ask you, what is the work at the wilder school, what do you do at vqu? i guess the better way to phrase it is the mission statement at virginia commonwealth university? >> the mission statement is that it's an urban university, obviously committed words resurgence, liberal arts college. as you know, we have medical schools and health sciences and all those other things. i'm at the wilder school, which is the school for government and public affairs, and it in and of itself is right now a part of the college of humanities. the effort is now being made for

it to be a standalone school. and we have 2,500 students just in the wilder school alone. i like to joke about this. i am considered a distinguished professor, so it took me all of my life to become distinguished. i had to wait until i left public office to do that. so i teach there. i also work with the director at the school. i likewise work with the president of the university, making certain -- we recently established or are in the process of establishing an india chair. and we had the ambassador from india come to speak with us last week. a fantastic event. and we're showing that we're going to be involved in public policy, public affairs. not just here in this country, but all over the world. and all over the country.

>> governor, mayor, and now distinguished professor, doug wilder who is joining us from richmond, virginia, part of the virginia commonwealth university. governor, on behalf of the students at the washington center and at george mason university in fairfax, virginia, thank you very much for sharing your time and expertise with our students. the supreme court heard oral arguments on arizona's immigration law on wednesday. governor jan brewer was in attendance. the day before, a senate subcommittee on immigration heard from arizona officials about the state's immigration law. the law's chief author testified with other former arizona officials. the event includes an interview with russell pierce, former state senator. it's about an hour and 45 minutes. >> i want you to meet six targets of this bill. the arizona immigration law. each and every one of them is a resident of arizona. they have stepped up publicly to

tell their stories about being brought to the united states by their parents as infants and children, now begging for a chance to earn they're way to legal status and citizenship. the first, dolce matoz, she graduated from arizona state university with a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering. she cofounded the arizona dream act coalition, an organization of more than 200 dream act students. last week, dolce was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by "time" magazine. dolce matoz is a target of the arizona immigration law. now, meet mara garcia. she's president of the cottonwood youth advisory commission in her hometown of cottonwood, arizona. she graduated from high school in 2010 with a 3.98 gpa. she's now a sophomore at a prestigious university in california. she would be a target of the arizona immigration law.

now meet juan rios, in high school, juan was the leader in the air force junior rotc. in 2010 he graduated from arizona state university with a degree in aeronautical engineering. since graduation, juan has put his life on hold. because of american law, he cannot enlist in our military or work in the aerospace industry. juan is a target of the arizona immigration law. now meet jose magana. jose graduated as valedictorian at his high school. at arizona state university, he joined the speech and debate team where he ranked fifth in the nation. in 2008, jose graduated summa cum laude day with a major in business management from arizona state university. later this year, jose will graduate from baylor university law school in waco, texas. he cannot be licensed to practice law in the united states because he has no country.

jose is a target of the arizona immigration law. finally, meet angelica hernandez. in high school, she served in the junior rotc and was president of the national honor society. last year she graduated from arizona state university as the outstanding senior in the mechanical engineering department. angelica is a target of the arizona immigration law. unlike the arizona immigration law the dream act is a practical solution to a serious problem which treats these young people and thousands of others in a humane and just way. sb-1070 would harm law enforcement and encourage racial profiling going after the very people that you have just met. that is not consistent with our values as a nation. it is not consistent with our constitutional values. mr. chairman, thank you for this hearing.

>> thank you, senator durbin, for an excellent and heartfelt statement. we will, having no other people here, will turn to our panelists. i'm going to introduce each of them. their entire statements will be read into the record, and we will let each of them make a statement. russell pearce is currently the president of banamnestynow.com. an organization advocating for increased immigration enforcement and border security. he was the former president of the arizona state senate, a position he held until november 2011. he's most widely known as the author of sb-1070, the arizona law, whose constitutionality is being decided by the supreme court and subject of this hearing today. he was originally elected to the arizona house of representatives in 2000 in the arizona senate in 2008, he also served as the director of arizona's motor vehicle division, the director of the governor's office of highway safety, and is a deputy

for 23 years with the maricopa county sheriff's office. dennis deconcini served as u.s. senator for arizona for 18 years from 1977 to 1995. prior to that, he served as pima county attorney, the chief prosecutor and civil attorney for the county and school districts within the tucson border area. he currently serves as a partner in the law firm of diconi, mcdonald and lacy with offices in tucson, phoenix, and washington, d.c. state senator steve gallardo a member of the arizona state senate, representing district 13. he previously served in the arizona house of representatives from 2003 through 2009, he has served on numerous state and local boards and committees, and is the leading sponsor of the state senate bill, arizona state senate bill that would repeal sb-1070. todd landfried is the executive director of arizona employers for immigration reform.

a grassroots organization comprised of 400 small, medium, large businesses committed to federal immigration -- sensible federal immigration policy. mr. landfried's organization filed an amicus brief with the supreme court in opposition to sb-1070. gentlemen, your entire statements without objection will be read into the record. mr. pearce, you may proceed as you wish, sir. >> good morning. i am russell pearce, the author and driving force behind sb-1070. which is overwhelmingly supported by citizens across this nation. thank you, chairman schumer, for inviting me here and before this honorable committee. it is an honor for me to appear. as you know, illegal alien problem is a critical issue, not just in arizona but across the nation and the effects of it ripple throughout society. in addressing this problem, we must begin by remembering we are a nation of laws. we must encourage, have the courage the fortitude to enforce

with compassion without apology those laws to protect the integrity of our borders and rights of our citizens from those who break our laws. sb-1070 removes the political handcuffs from law enforcement. all law enforcement agencies have the legal authority and moral obligation to uphold our laws just like sheriff joe who keeps his oath and does the job he was hired to do. the invasion of illegal aliens we face today, convicted felons, drug cartels, gang members, human traffickers, even terrorists, pose one of the greatest threats to our nation in terms of political, economic, and national security. during the debate of sb-1070 a rancher, friend of mine, rob krants, was murdered on the border by an illegal alien. i've attended funerals of citizens and law enforcement officers murdered by illegal aliens. i have a son, a deputy sheriff, critically wounded in the line of duty in a gun battle with illegal aliens while serving a warrant. i, too was critically wounded

shot in chest and hand in the line of duty. i've seen the real cost and damage caused by the presence of illegal aliens in this country. in arizona the annual costs of illegal immigration problem is $2.6 billion to educate, medicate, incarcerate. and those numbers don't reflect the cost of crimes committed by those here illegally or jobs lost by residents. the terrorist attacks of september 11, 2001, underscore for all americans the link between immigration law enforcement and terrorism. four of the five leaders of the 9/11 attack were in violation of the immigration laws and had contact with law enforcement and were not arrested. the failure to enforce the immigration laws was instrumental in deaths of nearly 3,000 people on that tragic day in america. under federal law, sanctuary policies are illegal but the

obama administration does not sue those cities that adopt such illegal policies. instead it chooses to sue arizona for enforcing the law, protecting its citizens, protecting jobs for lawful residents, and protecting the taxpayers and citizens of the republic in attempting to secure our borders. during my 11 years in arizona, i authored numerous legislative initiatives designed to protect the state of arizona from adverse effects of illegal immigration and importantly to uphold the rule of law. they include, 2004, voter i.d. at the polls passed by 57% of the voters. in 2006 a constitutional amendment denying bond to illegal aliens who commit serious crime. passed by 78% of the voters, 60% of hispanics. also in 2006, illegal aliens who sue american citizens cannot receive punitive damages, passed by 75% of voters. 2007, protect american jobs and honest employers by mandating

the use of e-verify for every business in the state of arizona. i'm also proud to say that each of these initiatives have become law and survived the various legal challenges. in fact, the last time was in washington, the supreme court upheld the e-verify law against the unpatriotic challenge of the chamber and the obama administration. because most provisions of sb-1070 are in effect the citizens of arizona are safer. according to phoenix law enforcement association which represents rank and file police officers and i quote, since sb-1070 phoenix experienced a 30-year low crime rate, 600 police vacancies, budget cuts and policing strategies did not bring about falling crime rates. sb-1070 did. the deterrence factor of this legislation brought about was clearly instrumental in our unprecedented drop in crime. all of this without a single

civil rights, racial profiling or biased police complaint. simply put, sb-1070 has clearly worked. and arizona has acted within its authority. the supreme court has held the states can utilize their police powers to enforce immigration laws. sb-1070 directs arizona law enforcement officers to cooperate and communicate with federal authorities regarding enforcement of federal immigration laws and imposes penalties and arizona law for noncompliance. it is only simple and clear law enforcement measures before the supreme court. this commonsense law is fully within the authority of arizona as it protects citizens for effects of illegal immigration and uprolleds the rule of law and protecting our citizens is the highest duty of any public official. thank you. god bless. may god continue to bless this republic. >> thank you mr. pearce. next, we'll go to senator deconcini. >> mr. chairman, senator durbin,

i want to thank you very much for an opportunity to address this very important issue. not only to my home state of arizona but to our nation. the constitutionality and prudence of federal immigration and enforcement laws by state and local governments is indeed a complex issue. mr. chairman, i'm a native arizona resident, i grew up in that state, i came from neighborhoods and business and a law practice with a multitude of hispanic and members tan friends, investors, what have you. we worked together, we shared each other's heritage and experience. the culture of our state reflects the rich history of the latino influence. but during the last two years, mr. chairman, we have unduly harmed our legal latino residents in this process. the solution of the problems coming into this country illegally. we have let rhetoric and political advantage cloud this

sound judgment. mr. chairman, this hearing is partly about 1070 and mostly seeing that the supreme court will address it tomorrow. i believe it is ill-founded, mean-spirited, divisive. instead, it requires state and local law enforcement to carry out immigration responsibilities that lie with the federal government clearly. prior to being elected in the united states senate in 1976 as the chairman pointed out, i was a peop a pima county attorney. to head up the arizona drug control district because of the tremendous problem along the border. this creation of this drug controlled district did not create laws that contradicted federal responsibility. it was a cooperative effort, put together by the legislature, republican legislature to address the problem, in accordance with the cooperation of the federal agencies and we

did just that. i mention this because there is some similarity that laws need to be in cooperation and not hostile to each other. when i came to the senate, i was appointed to this august committee, the judiciary committee and the committee on appropriations. both had jurisdiction over border control. customs. general services. i used all the jurisdictions to focus law and resources on the u.s. southwest border along with my many colleagues at the time, including some not from border states like allan simpson and mark hatfield from oregon. we worked in a bipartisan effort. i participated as a member of the select committee and commission on immigration and refugee policy, along with my friend strom thurman, allen simpson, ted kennedy. the committee issued a report in 1981 which led to passage of comprehensive immigration reform bill during president reagan's administration. let me remind everyone, president reagan supported that

bill, setting of a date to grandfather those in this country who were here illegally with a pathway to citizenship if they did not have a criminal record. i continue to work hard to see that this happens and occurs. many ask why our efforts did not work way back in 1981. there's an answer. we did not secure the borders, even though we passed comprehensive immigration reform. former senator pete domenici and i chaired the appropriations committee, and we constantly added earmarks -- sorry to use that word here in this august body today, but we added money that was not in the budget, and often it was taken out for other reasons. the -- at that time the effort of congress and the public just wasn't there on this problem. when i left the senate, the number of border patrols had increased from approximately

4,000 to -- in '95, that's what it was, now it's well over 21,000, as the chairman points out, with over 5,000 on the arizona border. those who say the federal government has not done its job in ensuring border security are wrong. i was in congress from '77 to '95, i can tell you, the federal government in recent years has made heroic efforts to secure our borders. it started under the previous administration, a republican administration, and continues now with such programs as secure communities. we are called here today to debate the merits, the constitutionality, of 1070. i believe it is unconstitutional, for many of the reasons the chairman pointed out, which i will not reiterate. having worked with law enforcement officers much of my life, i know this law puts law enforcement in a tenable position. police officers are trained to profile behavior, behavior, not people.

this law does the opposite. it profiles people. if you have brown skin in my state, you're going to be asked to prove your citizenship. the law has bad consequences. let me play a clip of an individual and it will tell you exactly what i'm talking about. this was taken just a few days after the bill passed both houses and right before the governor signed it. would you play the clip, please? >> -- divided our community. >> good evening, arizona. i'm patti kirkpatrick. the controversial illegal immigration bill isn't even law yet, but one valley couple says that didn't matter. the man claims he was targeted for his race and forced to provide his birth certificate. here's kirsten joyce with the story. >> the husband is a commercial truck driver, pulled over this morning at a weight scale check stop.

he was asked to show his documents. handed over his commercial vehicle's driver's license and provide a social security number. but according to him that wasn't enough. >> then he came and said, i need your birth certificate, and then i said, i said it's at my house. >> reporter: that's when he said officers handcuffed him, placing him in a van, transporting him here to the immigration and customs enforcement building in phoenix off central avenue. >> i can't imagine what he felt being put in the vehicle. people watching like he was some type of criminal. >> reporter: his wife says she was contacted and told to retrieve his birth certificate. she asked the agent why her husband had been detained and was told -- >> because he didn't answer the questions correctly. he stated that, you know, his mother is in mexico currently, that's where she lives, and i said is it a crime for his mother to be in mexico? and he said it is not but he just said it would be suspicious.

>> reporter: she left work, drove an hour back to maricopa, where she retrieved his and her documents, just in case. showing us abdon was born in fresno, california. within 90 minutes of the time she walked up to the building abdon was released. relieved to be out of that building. the two of them still remain baffled at the encounter. >> i don't think it's correct that i have to take my birth certificate with me all the times. i don't think that that's correct, you know? >> we can be stopped at any time and you have to show, bring the certificates with us and so forth, you know? it doesn't feel like it's a good way of life to live with fear, being stopped, even if we are okay, that we are legal here, we still have to carry our documents around. >> mr. chairman, thank you for taking extra time to look at that. this may have been unintended consequences as they say, but this is what has happened to many in my state.

this is not just one example that jumps out at you. let me just give you one more quick one. some statewide political leaders, county elected officials, say that as a direct result of undocumented people coming into our state, horrific crimes have been caused such as beheadings in the desert of arizona along our border. terrorists are sneaking in. there's no proof to this. these examples turned out to be totally false, including those made by our governor who had to retract them about the beheadings found in the desert. but this demonstrates how political this issue has become. it has not been about creating law enforcement solutions to secure our border from criminal or other deportation, those with criminal records. which this law, by the way, is a minor percentage of those who commit the crimes here. i could go on and tell you a lot of different stories here, because i've talked to a lot of different people. and finally, let me ask -- let me ask, who is the target of 1070?