Thread: Arizona woman off ballot after high court agrees her English isn't good enough

Arizona woman off ballot after high court agrees her English isn't good enough – This Just In - CNN.com Blogs

They actually expect someone running for public office in the U.S. to be able to speak English? How un-PC!

I traditionally support immigrants and their plight in this country whenever possible, but I have firm beliefs concerning assimilation as well. You should be able to reside in this country if you're willing to be a productive, law abiding citizen (and the misdemeanor of crossing the border illegally does not render them inherently non-law abiding). But, you should be expected to try to learn English, among other things. You're just hampering yourself by failing to do so. Political leadership just highlights the issue that should apply to all immigrants. Maybe you're running for office in a primarily Spanish-speaking constituency, and that's great. But not all of your voters speak Spanish and until Spanish becomes as commonly spoken as English in this country then you need to adapt.

In 2006, Arizona passed a law that made English the official language of the state. Nearly a century before, in 1910, Congress passed the Enabling Act, which allowed Arizona to become a state with certain requirements. Among them was one that addressed the English language.

It figures.

A few things from the CNN video -

1) Her English-speaking skills aren't that bad. The CNN reporter interviewer spoke to her in English, and she responded in English.
2) The lawsuit to keep her off the ballot was filed by the mayor, who was the target of two recall initiatives spearheaded by the candidate in question.

Originally Posted by meridian5455

You got a problem with people being required to speak English to hold public office in this country?

No. I have a problem with people being thrown off a ballot. Let the voters decided if this woman is qualified to hold office. FFS, the last time I checked, this was the United States of America, not some backward po-dunk third world country....although truth be told, it's getting more and more difficult to see the difference.

Originally Posted by Djinn

A few things from the CNN video -

1) Her English-speaking skills aren't that bad. The CNN reporter interviewer spoke to her in English, and she responded in English.
2) The lawsuit to keep her off the ballot was filed by the mayor, who was the target of two recall initiatives spearheaded by the candidate in question.

That's important info to consider.

Originally Posted by Djinn

A few things from the CNN video -

1) Her English-speaking skills aren't that bad. The CNN reporter interviewer spoke to her in English, and she responded in English.
2) The lawsuit to keep her off the ballot was filed by the mayor, who was the target of two recall initiatives spearheaded by the candidate in question.

That muddies the waters up a bit

Originally Posted by TennesseeRain

No. I have a problem with people being thrown off a ballot. Let the voters decided if this woman is qualified to hold office. FFS, the last time I checked, this was the United States of America, not some backward po-dunk third world country....although truth be told, it's getting more and more difficult to see the difference.

You need to get out more. Parts of this country are like third world countries.

I want to head off any accusations that this is a race issue by noting that the mayor is a latino who speaks Latin-accented English.

Originally Posted by meridian5455

You need to get out more. Parts of this country are like third world countries.

The voters should decide. Not the courts.