People in the Russian-speaking community believe that most lawyers feel sympathy for undocumented immigrants and support immigration reform that would make it possible for them to gain the documents they need. Lawyers specializing in immigration law show work particularly hard: not only do they support illegal immigrants, they also eagerly offer them their services and represent them in immigration courts.  

In actuality, American (including Russian-speaking) lawyers have varying attitudes towards undocumented immigrants. Some really do feel for them and support them. Others believe that illegal immigrants are criminals who are breaking the law (the word "illegal" says it all!) and must therefore be found, caught, and sent back to their native countries.  

There are even lawyers who passionately call for the deportation of illegal immigrants, but take on their cases (and money) and defend them at immigration hearings without hesitation. Finally, there are lawyers who are unequivocally against undocumented immigrants and are putting as much effort as they can into driving them out of America.   

One such lawyer is Kris V. Kobach, a conservative doctor of jurisprudence, university law professor, and Republican politician who formerly worked at the U.S. Department of Justice. He considers it his mission to fight against the undocumented at local levels and is carrying out a large-scale campaign against them in courts in various cities and states. Within the framework of this campaign, Kobach is either insisting on stricter laws and rules concerning illegal immigrants or trying to repeal other laws that are meant to somehow make life easier for illegal immigrants and treat them with some sort of leniency.  

Kobach, a Harvard graduate who received his J.D. from Yale, says that his views on immigration were formed after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. He started working at the Justice Department one week before this tragedy and it was at his initiative that a program was later launched requiring regular verifications of immigrants from 25 Muslim countries. 

This program resulted in the deportation of 13,000 people who had violated immigration laws. Muslim leaders complained that it traumatized their communities. Additionally, Kobach and then Attorney General John Ashcroft carried out something of a purge within immigration courts, slashing the number of judges and making it easier for them to reject appeals made by illegal immigrants.  

Kobach left the Justice Department in 2003. He subsequently waged an unsuccessful campaign for a seat in Congress representing the state of Kansas and has recently announced that he will run for Attorney General in that state. So it is possible that his campaign against illegal immigrants is part of his campaign for office, even though it extends beyond Kansas and includes many states.  

Kobach recently burst into the federal court building in Dallas to convince a judge that he should support a law passed by a county in Texas prohibiting landlords from renting housing to illegal immigrants. In substantiating his opinion, Kobach stated that Washington seems to be putting the problem of illegal immigration off indefinitely and that therefore state and city governments have to take on greater initiative (indeed, the Obama administration has moved healthcare reform to the forefront, and only plans to seriously tackle immigration issues towards the end of the year, if not later). 

At the same time, Kobach mentioned that the federal government has not yet granted amnesty to illegal immigrants, made their fate easier for them, or laid out a path to citizenship for them. What's more, Washington continues to fight – albeit by inertia – illegal immigration as it did in the good old times of George W. Bush. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents continue to catch the undocumented during raids on plants, factories, and other enterprises, while owners of large and small businesses are still required to provide the government with documents showing that all their employees have legal status.  

Kobach believes that in a situation such as this, local governments and courts should not swim against the current or be at odds with Washington, even if this current is flowing because of inertia. Meaning, they should not soften federal laws on illegal immigrants. On the contrary, they should feel free to make these laws stricter.  

"Separating the position of local governments from the position of the federal government on the issue of illegal immigration does not only contradict the law, it is also poor policy," stressed the lawyer.  

Kris Kobach faced a lawyer from an immigrant-rights organization who came to court with a team of aides and a thick folder of documents. But this did not bother the lawyer/professor in the least. He gave a fiery speech, citing a series of constitutional amendments and famous cases and precedents. And he was able to convince the judge that he was right. 

This is just one of many episodes from Kobach's campaign against the undocumented. And he is just one of the conservative lawyers participating in it. 

His opponents note that he is connected to the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), an organization that calls for the overall curbing of immigration, particularly illegal immigration. This organization has a legal wing called the Immigration Reform Law Institute, which is a non-profit organization. All the lawyers that make up this wing share the views and convictions of Kris Kobach. It could even be said that Kobach is their protégé.  

Let us return, however, to the campaign launched by these lawyers. It is mainly being waged in courts in those cities, counties, and states where the local population is poorly disposed to illegal immigrants and wants the government to take measures to hold back their "invasion."  

It can happen that local politicians and judges bend under the influence of voters and take on the role of the federal government, not only toughening laws against illegal immigrants, but also working actively to bring these new, stricter versions to life. In situations such as these, immigrant-rights organizations sue local governments. And Kris Kobach invariably represents the latter.  

Kobach has participated in many immigration "competitions" in courts in California, Arizona, Missouri, Pennsylvania, and other states. His opponents are usually rights organizations, especially those that work with immigrants from Mexico and other Latin American countries. They have usually asserted that Kobach and his supporters discriminate against the undocumented and are creating a division in immigrant communities by calling on people with legal status to "out" illegal immigrants. 

But Kris Kobach and other lawyers participating in the campaign against illegal immigrants assail their opponents with unfailing ardor and are frequently successful. They generally resort to the same tactic described above: on the one hand they stress that it would be unseemly for local governments to oppose Washington, and on the other, they assert that it is now, when the White House is not doing anything, which local governments can and should create the country's immigration policy. What can you say? Mr. Kobach and his supporters are deft at maneuvering.  

Which specific local laws do conservative lawyers want to toughen and immortalize? Mainly laws, rules, and rulings that either prohibit local landlords from renting apartments to illegal immigrants or that punish businesspeople who hire illegal immigrants. Kobach obtained approval of measures like these in Pennsylvania, Texas, and even Puerto Rico.  

Meanwhile, for example, in Kansas and Arizona, Kobach insisted on revoking laws that allow illegal immigrants who are students to pay reduced tuition for their education at local colleges. Also in Arizona, he forced through a law that made it possible to revoke the licenses of businesspeople who always hire illegal immigrants.  

Kobach maintains that his main goal is to restore the power of the law. "Members of Congress throw up their hands and complain that the immigration system does not work," he said. "Actually, the system will work if we learn how to bring laws to life while taking into account the varying situations in different states and cities in our large country." 

Kobach's opponents fear that his campaign could ensnare the country in a net of strict immigration laws and rules passed at local levels that contradict federal law. And when Washington finally decides to tackle the immigration problem, it will have to sue state, county, and municipality administrations that were pressured either by their populations or by lawyers like Kobach into modifying the country's immigration law.  

As a result, the famous "comprehensive immigration reform" could take the form of a number of absurd, expensive lawsuits while the real problems of the undocumented remain unresolved. 

Let us hope that this is not what happens.