Arnold's Answer.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(EDITORIALS)(Editorial)

Immigration: California's governor could teach his party -- and president -- a thing or two about upholding the law and supporting those who play by the rules.

In the view of conventional Republican Party wisdom, Arnold Schwarzenegger really should not be what he is right now -- the state's most powerful and popular politician.

Here's a man who supported Proposition 187, the 1994 measure designed to bar public services for illegal immigrants. He also locked horns with Hispanic political leaders during last year's recall election by opposing driver's licenses for illegals.

Last week, Schwarzenegger vetoed a bill to grant such licenses. Supporters of the measure vowed to organize protests and stage a national boycott of California's convention business.

Is he worried? He has no reason to be. Democrats tried to paint him as anti-Hispanic in the recall, yet Schwarzenegger polled better among Hispanics than the last GOP gubernatorial candidate. Besides, the idea of letting illegals get the state's all-purpose ID strikes most voters as absurd and deeply unfair to law-abiding immigrants.

He hasn't pressed that point. Like other politicians opposed to the licenses, he made his case mainly on security, arguing the IDs could be a handy tools for terrorists. He should have gone to the core of the matter and made a moral argument for legal immigration.

...