California is not special, it's just a tad further along a path a number of other states are following.
The real problem with sanctuary states like California is that they've abandoned the very principles that made American great.
Our country's traditional "melting pot" blueprint allowed immigrants to arrive legally, acclimate to the American way of life, and provide the opportunities to build a better life. All that has been thrown out the window by Liberals despite what they tell you on camera. Their "new and improved" attitudes towards immigration is not only unsustainable but hurts worst the Mexican immigrants themselves.
Immigration reform has been on the table for decades but powerful groups work very hard to curtail any meaningful discussion on the topic. It is impossible to engage in any sort of rational debate without cries of racism being shouted before any discussion begins. Take a close look at those groups who stymie any rational debate on the subject and you will find they are the very ones who claim they are on the side of the immigrants.
Progressive journalists, government bureaucrats, academics, and La Raza view illegal aliens as a new political constituency to be exploited for their own personal gain. There is good money in outrage and those who fan the flames are cashing in. Yet try to sit down with any of these groups to talk immigration reform and you get a brick wall in return, plus cries of racism.
As with most things, follow the money.
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Central Texas, where I live, is a true melting pot. Everywhere you look there are cultural ties to Mexico, Germany, Sweden, Poland, Czechoslovakia, China, Vietnam and most any country you can name. Besides the awesome variety of food choices, these cultures coexist together very well, intermarry, work and play together, and have the view diversification is a win win all the way around.
Yet Liberal policies are working overtime to tear it all apart. Their divide and conquer approach serves only their own short term purposes. Try to explain to a Liberal how critical it is that immigrants learn the English language. That 20 year old can only live off back breaking work until his back gives out. At 40 he is left with darn few options if he doesn't speak the language. With no back to do the hard lifting and no way to communicate with the rest of us his only remaining option is victimhood.
Which is just the way they want it.