No matter your political persuasion, we all detest the slimy opportunistic politician — the one who will cast aside all principle and responsibility to the broader constituency to score points as if politics is a mere game, a chance to toy with the lives of those most vulnerable. Within the Hamilton County delegation, no one fits this bill quite like Bo Watson.
In recent years, the Republican state senator, representing North Chattanooga, has been on an anti-immigrant tear, with particular ire directed toward schoolchildren. Last year, Watson spearheaded a bill that would have allowed school districts to demand tuition from undocumented students or else face disenrollment.
After the legislation failed to pass over concerns about continued federal education funding, the bill has been amended to no longer authorize districts to deny enrollment. Instead, the bill, passed by the state House earlier this month and postponed for consideration by the Senate on Thursday, would require students’ immigration status to be tracked.
Essentially creating a state database of undocumented schoolchildren, this bill has no privacy protections, as each student’s status would be collected by name.