SIERRA VISTA, Ariz. (AP) - Protesters left 22 bags of trash piled 3 feet deep in front of the door to
U.S. Rep. Jim Kolbe's Sierra Vista office.
The protesters also left written messages, several of them focusing on the trash that illegal immigrants
leave behind as they cross through the area.
"Mr. Kolbe, It is your duty to uphold the constitution. Close our borders. Protect U.S. citizens and our
environment," said a message on a piece of cardboard.
"We are still being invaded! Here is some proof," read another message, this one left on an empty
trash bag that had been taped to the outside of an office window.
Bernadette Polley, Kolbe's local office manager, said Monday that the trash was intended to convey a
political message because of Kolbe's desire to find new ways to address illegal immigration problems.
Kolbe, a Republican, is among the members of the Arizona congressional delegation who have been
backing a guest worker bill that they say will help reduce the number of illegal immigrants crossing
into the United States from Mexico.
"I am just as concerned about the serious amount of trash left behind by illegal immigrants crossing
the Arizona-Mexico border, and I believe that the temporary worker bill that I have introduced is a new
way of solving the problems that come with illegal immigration," Kolbe said in a statement released
Monday.
The trash had been left at Kolbe's office during the weekend and was removed early Monday.
