Gwinnett Daily Post
Dave Williams
September 19, 2006
gwinnettdailypost . com/index.php?s=&url_channel_id=1&url_article_id=19482&url_subchannel_id=&change_well_id=2

Civil rights advocates charged Gov. Sonny Perdue on Monday with seeking to score political points on the illegal immigration issue at the expense of Georgia Latinos.During a news conference at the Capitol, Hispanic and black leaders criticized remarks Perdue made recently in announcing an initiative targeting criminals who use false documents to obtain driver's licenses.

"It is simply unacceptable for people to sneak into this country illegally on Thursday, obtain a government-issued ID on Friday, head for the welfare office on Monday and go to vote on Tuesday, the governor said.

Such incendiary comments both oversimplify the issue and foster racism, said Teodoro Maus, an advisor to the Coordinating Council of Community Leaders, one of the groups that organized Monday's news conference.

...State Sen. Curt Thompson, D-Norcross, whose Gwinnett County Senate district is the most diverse in the state, accused Perdue of playing a destructive brand of politics in his bid for a second term this fall.