LOS ANGELES - California's Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, himself an immigrant, unleashed a firestorm of criticism this week by saying the United States should "close the borders" to combat illegal immigration.
The United States should "close the borders in California and all across Mexico and in the United States, because I think it is just unfair to have all those people coming across, have the borders open the way it is, and have this kind of lax situation," the Austrian-born former action movie star told stunned reporters in San Francisco Tuesday.
California's huge immigrant communities immediately opened fire, suggesting that, of all people, an immigrant like Schwarzenegger should be sensitive about people looking for opportunities in the United States.
Schwarzenegger, who came to the United States in 1968, corrected himself on Wednesday, saying: "Yesterday was a total screw-up in the words I used, because instead of 'closing,' I meant 'securing.' I think maybe my English, I need to go back to school and study a little bit."
But before he backpedaled, the criticism flooded in from many quarters.
Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez said "the governor should ratchet down this rhetoric and retreat from this narrow-minded approach to immigration; even President (George W.) Bush rejects the idea of a closed border with Mexico.
"Closing our borders to commerce and culture is an idea that comes from political extremists, not rational policymakers. We need an immigration policy that preserves our productive relationship with Mexico and respects the rule of law," he said.
According to Maria Blanco, of the San Francisco-based Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights, the governor "continues to shoot from the hip, which is really becoming a liability for him. This is another step to the right. Because of that, we're really getting polarized again.
"He will be guaranteed failure if he doesn't take into account the contributions of immigrant laborers in California. These comments are going to get him into huge trouble with the Latino community and the Latino (legislative) caucus, and will only increase the polarization."
Roughly a third of Californians are of Hispanic origin.
State Senator Gil Cedillo, a Los Angeles Democrat, meanwhile questioned the intent behind the comments: "I would find it difficult to believe the governor meant that, when California and its prosperity and so many industries rely on the immigrant workforce," he said.
04/21/2005 14:02 GMT