Virginia gubernatorial candidate Bob McDonnell would move to expand a local immigration enforcement program statewide if elected, the former attorney general said.
The Republican said he would like to see Virginia State Police trained for the program, known as 287(g), which allows local law enforcement officials to enforce some federal immigration laws. Some local jurisdictions in the state, including Prince William and Loudoun counties, participate in the program.
“I have urged Governor Kaine for one and a half years to enter into [the] partnership,” he said in an interview with reporters and editors at The Washington Examiner. “It would be a proper and limited tool to help us enforce the law.”
McDonnell said he has met with federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials about six times, as well as leaders of the ethnic community, to make sure they knew what the program entailed and that it was “not a subterfuge for profiling.”
Prince William County Police Chief Charlie Deane also has tried to assure residents that the department does not engage in racial profiling, and that crime victims and witnesses will be protected. A University of Virginia study released last month said that most citizens approve of the way Prince William police are enforcing the policy, but also that the county policy would be challenging to implement on a large scale.
McDonnell, however, said he was confident that the program could be expanded to the state level, adding that it was a “legitimate and prudent” way to enforce the law.
Critics argue that the program lacks a clear directive and is not an effective solution.
“Creigh Deeds supports common-sense efforts to identify and deport undocumented immigrants in local jails,” said Deeds campaign spokesman Jared Leopold.
Leopold added that Deeds would oppose a statewide program that would force local governments to pay for what he said was a federal responsibility.
