[quote=deadzone]Non-US citizens are required to carry documentation by law. I don’t need to prove that to you. Everyone is required to carry driver’s license while operating a vehicle.
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Ok. I’ll try to make my point again.
US Citizens are *not* required to carry documentation of their citizenship.
Drivers licenses are not citizenship documents, btw.
So – a cop pulls over someone who they suspect is here illegally. That person, a citizen, cannot produce the required paperwork… so they get hauled into the police station. Perhaps they don’t have the appropriate paperwork… the percentage of US citizens with passports is very low. And how many people keep a certified copy of their birth certificate readily available. (e.g. not in a safe deposit box, at their parents house, etc.)

The problem is that it will effect people who “look” like they might be illegal more than those who “look” like citizens. We’re supposed to be a melting pot – but in this case hispanics will get asked for proof more than caucasians, blacks, and asians.

Alabama has had some bad luck with their papers please law. First they detained a german car exec. Then a japanese car exec. Not good for the local economy (car plants) when you’re harrassing the executives. Missouri is now advertising that they won’t harrass car execs if they move their plants to that state.
http://news.yahoo.com/alabamas-house-approves-changes-tough-immigration-law-015925894.html