Gallegly Brings Proposition 187-Style Tug-of-War to Congress

If you listen to critics, Rep. Elton Gallegly (R-Simi Valley) is going to increase the ranks of the nation’s street gangs by providing them with hundreds of thousands of new recruits.

Gallegly, however, says it is his critics, not he, who are promoting the breaking of the law.

The disagreement stems from a contentious amendment sponsored by Gallegly that the House included in its illegal immigration bill last month. The proposal, adapted from California’s Proposition 187, would give states the right to deny public schooling to illegal immigrant children, a move the Supreme Court has ruled unconstitutional in the past.

Gallegly says his amendment must be seen in context, as part of a broad effort to eliminate the incentives that draw illegal immigrants to this country. The bill also includes the addition of 5,000 Border Patrol agents to enforce the law and provisions that would ban public benefits to the undocumented.

“As long as we have a law on the books that you should not illegally enter this country, we should enforce that law,” said Gallegly. “We are rewarding people illegally coming to this country and harming citizens.”

Critics of the plan, however, contend that Gallegly’s approach will cause far more problems than it solves. Police and education groups have begun lobbying Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole (R-Kan.) in recent days to prevent the Senate from adopting a similar measure in its immigration legislation next week.

“How can anyone advocate throwing thousands of children onto the streets without supervision, where they will become both victims and criminals?” Richard Roberts of the International Union of Police Assns. asked rhetorically. “Local law enforcement officers, our members, will be overwhelmed at a time we can ill afford the extra pressure.”

The school officials who would be called on to enforce such a ban are also vigorously opposing the measure.

“We don’t think children should be harmed by the actions of their parents,” said Anna Sol Guitierrez of the National School Boards Assn., which represents 25,000 school districts across the country.

Added Michael Casserly of the Council of Great Cities Schools: “We will not stand in the schoolhouse door and bar these children.”

The issue has quickly become a political football.

The San Fernando Valley-area delegation to the House divided along partisan lines. Republicans Carlos J. Moorhead of Glendale and Howard “Buck” McKeon of Santa Clarita supported the Gallegly amendment; Democrats Henry A. Waxman of Los Angeles, Howard L. Berman of Panorama City and Anthony C. Beilenson of Woodland Hills voted against it.

In the Senate, Democrats Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein both have said they will oppose a schooling ban.

Knowing that the White House also objects to the ban, some Republicans are seeking to use it to force President Clinton into the uncomfortable position of vetoing immigration reform.

“We view this as an election-year ploy to try to put President Clinton on the defensive on the issue of immigration in California,” said Frank Sharry, executive director of the National Immigration Forum.

Gallegly denies political motives, saying the proposal makes good sense.

Battle Stations

Valley Assemblyman Richard Katz (D-Sylmar) will be among those beating the drums for the Democrats at this weekend’s state party convention at the Bonaventure Hotel.

As Democratic Assembly leader, it is Katz’s mission in life to take back the lower house for his party, which lost control in 1994.

“We’re in good shape to do that,” Katz said this week.

Katz believes the 1994 election was an anomaly in which the difference between winning 39 seats and 41 seats was less than 1,000 votes out of 4 million cast statewide.

Democrats are counting on the normal increase in party turnout in a presidential election year to win some hotly contested races in the Glendale-Burbank-Pasadena area. On paper, either party has a chance there, though in practice it’s always been Republican territory.

The hot contests include a congressional race, a state Senate race and two Assembly battles.

Democrat Doug Kahn and GOP Assemblyman James Rogan (R-Glendale) will go head to head for the seat being vacated by Carlos J. Moorhead. In the state Senate race, Democrats are pinning their hopes on former federal prosecutor Adam Schiff. He’ll be up against a formidable foe, Assemblywoman Paula Boland (R-Granada Hills).

Of the two Assembly races, Katz has the highest hopes for the 44th District seat. The seat is now held by Bill Hoge (R-Pasadena), who’s being challenged by former Pasadena College president Jack Scott.

“It’s a key race,” Katz said. “I think Jack Scott has an excellent chance.”

Nor has he conceded Rogan’s Glendale-based Assembly seat. There, in the more conservative 43rd District, GOP newcomer John Geranios faces Democrat Scott Wildman.

Expect both parties to pour megabucks into these contests.

Pipe Bomb

In war and politics, the battles are often won or lost when the strategy is drafted.

That was proved this week when Los Angeles City Councilman Richard Alarcon held a news conference on the steps of City Hall to denounce a proposed pipeline that would run through his northeast San Fernando Valley district and the rest of the city.

The plan, according to his news release, was to charge that the pipeline lacked any “grass-roots” base of support representative of the community, but instead had an “Astroturf PR” base of support.

But when Alarcon emerged from City Hall on Monday morning to take his place behind the podium, he came face to face with more than 30 pipeline supporters, waving banners and signs. Opponents, who he said represented the true community, numbered only about 10 people.

“This looks like the wrong press conference,” an embarrassed Alarcon said as he walked to the podium.

Trying to explain why the “grass-roots” community was outnumbered three to one, Alarcon said the pipeline supporters were paid off with Christmas hams and were bused in at the expense of the oil companies who proposed the pipeline.

While the supporters rejected the charge that they were paid off, an oil company spokesman acknowledged that the group was bused in and that several supporters were given hams and turkeys during the holidays.

Part of Alarcon’s problem could have been that he announced his news conference on the Friday before the event, giving pipeline advocates plenty of time to launch a counterattack.

Thomas Walker, a spokesman for the corporate consortium that is proposing the line, said he heard about the news conference on Saturday and decided to gather his supporters at Alarcon’s event Monday before heading into a City Hall hearing.

“I think you do what you can do to make your case,” he said.

The Hole Truth

Folks at the Los Angeles city attorney’s office were livid this week after Francine Oschin, an assistant deputy for Councilman Hal Bernson, accused the office of being a “black hole” where proposed legislation disappears.

Oschin was referring to a Bernson proposal to reduce prostitution--particularly along Sepulveda Boulevard in Van Nuys--by televising and publishing the names and photos of men arrested for soliciting hookers.

Bernson proposed the law in December and asked the city attorney’s office to return to the council within 30 days with a report on the feasibility of the idea. As yet, the council has heard no formal report.

Last week, Oschin was quoted here blaming the delay on the city attorney’s office.

Ted Goldstein, a spokesman for the city attorney’s office, came to his department’s defense, saying two attorneys have already told Bernson that the idea is not feasible because if any man whose photo was televised by the city were found innocent, he could sue the city for a bundle.

Guilt and innocence are not decided when a person is arrested, he argued. “Many, many people in this city are arrested every day,” Goldstein said.

Despite the city attorney’s concerns, he said the proposal was referred to the Los Angeles Police Department’s planning and research department to study whether the force can implement the plan.

Goldstein wouldn’t go so far as to say that the Police Department is the real “black hole,” but he did say that his department does not deserve the moniker.

Lacey reported from Washington, D.C., Hill-Holtzman and Martin from Los Angeles.