The wingnuts are all worked up over Mexican President Felipe Calderon's disparaging remarks about Arizona's police-state immigration law. (They especially don't like that Democrats applauded it.) Notably, Orrin Hatch got his feelings hurt.
One of their favorite ways to fire back at such criticism from south of the border is to point at Mexico's own immigration laws, which at one time were pretty antediluvian indeed. (This was the Washington Times' recent approach.) Sean Hannity trumpeted this approach in his lead segment on Fox News last night.
Hannity ran to his pal Michelle Malkin's website and pulled down a list of supposed attributes of Mexican immigration law (the Hannity graphic says it was posted May 20, but it actually ran back on April 28). Snarked Hannity:
Hannity: Here's my question: Before the president of Mexico comes here and lectures us on the South Lawn of the White House, you think he maybe ought to talk about changing his own law first?
Sure, Sean. Except that in fact he already did.
Hannity was working with outdated information from Malkin. Mexico reformed its immigration laws in 2008 so that it was no longer a criminal offense:
Migrant rights activists applauded a vote by Mexico's Congress to remove long-standing criminal penalties for undocumented migrants found in the country.
The measure passed unanimously in the lower house on Tuesday, a day after Senate approval. President Felipe Calderón's office declined to say whether he would sign the popular measure into law.
Mexican lawmakers saw the harsh penalties as an anachronism, and some noted that Mexico also owes migrants better treatment.
Andrea Nill at ThinkProgress' Wonk Room has more:
In 2008, the Mexican Congress voted unanimously with 393 votes to decriminalize undocumented immigration to Mexico. Before then, the Washington Times description of Mexican immigration law would’ve been accurate. Following the 2008 reform, however, undocumented immigration is a minor offense punishable by fines equivalent to about $475 to $2,400. The approved reform identified Mexico’s old immigration laws as “inadmissible” and a violation of human rights.
Anyone wanna bet we never see a correction from either Malkin, Hannity, or the Washington Times?
