May 6, 2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Matt Kokkonen, 805-886-1880
                    Andrew Russo, 831-753-1419

WATERFIELD FLIP-FLOPS ON ARIZONA LAW
33rd District candidate tells KVEC she supports law for Arizonans only

SAN LUIS OBISPO — 33rd Assembly District candidate Etta Waterfield is changing her position on the recently-enacted Arizona immigration law only days after she claimed to support it.

In a Tuesday night interview with KVEC’s Dave Congalton, Waterfield said she supports the law for Arizonans only but would not support such a law in California.

“This is clearly a flip-flop, an attempt to have it both ways. It is political doubletalk to say you support a law in another state, but wouldn’t enact such a law here. What good does the Arizona law do for Californians if it can’t be implemented outside the borders of that state? Ms. Waterfield should remember that she’s running for the California State Assembly,” said Republican frontrunner Matt Kokkonen who supports enactment of a California version of the Arizona legislation.

“The Arizona law merely gives local law enforcement the right – if circumstances warrant – to inquire about the immigration status of a gang member or someone involved in other criminal activity. It is NOT about harassing law-abiding Latino citizens or legal residents. Ms. Waterfield would apparently deny this important tool to local law enforcement. This indicates that her position on illegal immigration is weak and that she really has no solutions to a problem that is costing Californians $11 billion a year,” said Kokkonen.

###

Matt Kokkonen is a San Luis Obispo financial planner and political activist. In 2008, he was the Republican nominee for Congress in the 23rd District, receiving over 80,000 votes. Currently, he is a candidate for State Assembly in the 33rd District.