Locked in a close race for re-election, Los Angeles Mayor James K. Hahn is talking tough on illegal immigraton:

“People are flooding our borders because the federal government won’t do its job,” the mayor said, his voice rising. “And people are basically being invited here by all the employers who will hire illegal aliens in this country and depress our wages and ruin our economy.”

Does he mean it?

-Los Angeles has been an official sanctuary for illegal aliens since 1979, when the city police commission issued an order at the city council’s behest barring cooperation between local cops and the INS. Special Order 40 forbids police from questioning anyone about immigration status until after criminal charges have been made. As far as I know, Mayor Hahn has done nothing to change these policies.

-In 2001, Hahn said he supported amnesty for illegal aliens–a position that won him favor from OBL (Open Borders Lobby) groups.

-Hahn’s hand-picked police chief, William J. Bratton, spoke out in support of drivers’ licenses for illegal aliens last year.

-Hahn once called Los Angeles a “Mexican city.”

-Reader Paul Nachman points out that Hahn was present at the kick-off for the “Immigrant Workers’ Freedom Ride” at Los Angeles’ City Hall on September 20, 2003. (Nachman says mayoral candidates Richard Alarcon, Bernard C. Parks, and Antonio ["Mecha Boy"] Villaraigosa were also there.)

So, is Hahn an earnest civic leader concerned about law-breaking immigrants? Or is he a desperate, double-dealing politician fishing for votes in the San Fernando Valley? Los Angeles voters get to make the call next week.