I’ve lived in Phoenix, AZ my entire life. I know and see the impact illegal immigration has. It has always been a present part of my life, from my classmates who were brought across the border before they could even walk, to the horrors of drug and sex traffickers in the desert on my nightly news.

I know we need immigration reform in a lot of ways. I know that behind SB1070 was a (misguided) move toward removing immigrants who commit serious crimes out of our state. I know that immigration is a real problem, I am not clouded by the idea that every immigrant is innocent and wanting freedom.

But I know that immigration is a problem that needs to be solved through cooperation and compassion and humanity, which is why I was so excited when the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals act was put into place.

The children – infants, even – who are brought across the border illegally had no choice in breaking the law. They had no choice in growing up as an American. They had no option to say, “Hey, this is illegal, we should stop” and leave the only life they knew.

With DACA, America gives these children a choice, an option. Something they were never given before – the option to be an upstanding American citizen, to be documented and get health care and a drivers license and work a job that pays taxes to America. The opportunity to start on the path of being a legal citizen.

Jan Brewer doesn’t like this.

She doesn’t like children, teenagers, and young adults with good records, who want to become American citizens but have no path to do so, having this opportunity.

She would rather young people just hop on back over the border to a strange country and live there. Just because she had the blessing of falling out of a vagina onto American soil, while these children were dragged on to it.

America is supposed to be a land of freedom and opportunity and growth and the chance to achieve all your dreams. Here we have thousands of people – yes, illegal immigrants are people, too! – who are ready to work for those opportunities and freedom – and Jan Brewer wants to deny them that chance.

For what reason? The application fee to be considered for DACA is nearly $500 (covering the costs of giving benefits to illegals), it gives young people a chance to work in America and pay taxes to America (I guess she’d rather keep raising our taxes in AZ), and it sets the path for a generation of legal Americans to help curb immigration and reform it.

Jan Brewer doesn’t like it because – well I’m still not entirely clear. She seems to be too busy throwing a tantrum to explain her position outside of, “They’re illegal!”

Until she does, I’ll be busy getting ready to vote her out of office. I’m sure much of Arizona is tired of her focus on blocking immigration reform rather than helping our state move forward.