Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach (and author of numerous immigration enforcement laws) discussed the two pieces of E-verify legislation in Washington, the Smith bill versus the Grassley Senate version. (E-verify is the federal program by which businesses can quickly check online whether a prospective employee is a legal worker.) The talk was held at a meeting of the Missouri Eagle Forum, where Jessica Vaughan of CIS also commented on E-verify, speaking favorably of the Smith proposal; Watch here.

Kobach began by remarking the flawed Smith bill, which pushes the states off the field regarding enforcement had created a rare disagreement among the friends of American sovereignty: ”It’s a sad bill for me, because it’s the first time in my career that I’ve seen the immigration enforcement community divided.”

Many agree with Tom Tancredo who warned, ”States should not be barred from employment-related enforcement.”

Kobach went on to voice distrust of legislation where the Chamber of Commerce apparently had the final say, after the organization has been one of the most dogged enemies of border and workplace enforcement.