Arizona Seems to be Rethinking Its Immigration Priorities

There was important news out of Arizona yesterday, where the state Senate defeated several bills that were aimed at even further restrictions on undocumented immigrants.

The Senate voted down bills that sought to provoke a reevaluation by the U.S. Supreme Court of birthright citizenship for the children of illegal immigrants, Senate officials said.

Other defeated measures sought to ban undocumented students from studying at state universities, as well as requiring hospitals and schools to check the legal status of patients and students respectively.

The votes came despite the Senate having a majority of Republicans, generally more sympathetic to such measures than Democrats.

"This was a clear statement that Arizona needs to focus on its priorities, not try to solve the immigration problem," Democratic State Senator Steve Gallardo told Reuters.

The story from Reuters also notes, however, that there may still be some backdoor politicking on these issues, so we need to stay tuned:

Despite the state Senate defeat, there is a possibility the laws could be revived during this legislative session in the form of amendments to other bills, or through calls for a revote.