AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- Tea party supporters in Texas are calling on Gov. Rick Perry to revive efforts to crack down on illegal immigration by giving police broader powers to ask people they detain about their citizenship.
Perry made the issue an emergency item, seemingly fast-tracking it toward passage, during the Texas legislative session this year.
The House passed a version during the regular session, and the Senate passed one in the special session that followed. Democratic opposition kept those from becoming law.
Tea party activists on Thursday urged Perry to call another special session or sign an executive order.
Perry and supporters say it will help police fight crime committed by illegal immigrants. But opponents, including law enforcement chiefs in Texas' largest cities, say it will allow rogue officers to target Hispanics.
