The Washington Post has the story. The flare-up occurred during a meeting of the US Commission on Civil Rights Friday.

The chairman of a federal civil rights panel clashed yesterday with Prince William Board of County Supervisors Chairman Corey A. Stewart over the recent crackdown on illegal immigrants approved by the board.

—

Stewart (R-At Large), who led the effort to curtail some county services, accused Chavez of having a “clear past and agenda here.” Chavez withdrew her nomination as U.S. secretary of labor in 2001 when reports surfaced that she had employed an illegal immigrant. She said the undocumented Guatemalan woman living in her home was not an employee, but she withdrew to avoid embarrassing President Bush.

“We’ve found it difficult to quantify the problem,” Stewart said of the cost and impact of illegal immigration on the county. “But that doesn’t mean it’s not a problem.”

The county did look at the impact of illegal immigration on the community, Stewart said, citing crime, residential overcrowding and increased use of hospital emergency rooms. Chavez called that anecdotal.

Later, in an interview, Stewart called Chavez “an illegal immigrant apologist.”

Now where would anyone get the idea that Linda Chavez is an illegal immigrant apologist?