The New Arizona Immigration Law (SB1070) in Arizona

[B5150]

No hard feelings to you. I'm just passionate about the future of the country. It won't matter pretty soon cause Jesus is coming. When Iran attacks Israel and we don't defend them, its over. All nations will turn against Israel and I guess we are included. I just wouldn't have guessed it would be like this.

They didn't either but someone had to facilitate it didn't they.

 

[HereToStudy]

Well the Mexican drug cartels do carry tons of marijuana into the country, so regardless of safety, you are part of the demand.

If we want to get technical, most of my weed cause from home grows from friends of friends.

vWhat upward trend in jobs in the private sector are there? An increase in government jobs don't help the economy. 160,000 census jobs that were created are only temporary and tax payers are paying for them. Not profit from private companies. [/quote]

Invalid Link Removed This is new york alone, but I really am not in the mood to research this heavily. I posted a graphic earlier that showed the job creation trend. I don't know the source but based on hearing job creation has been on the rise, I will tend to believe it. If you don't want to, I understand, but take the New York article as an indication.

Lastly and I am done. There is a reason this country has produced more wealth than any other nation in history. Its because America was created to be different than everyone else. If you make 30,000/yr here, you are in the top 7% in the world. The reason all the other socialist countries are so much poorer is because what wealth there is, its sucked up by the politicians and dictators that run them. America is great for a reason. Why are so my people so hell bent on destroying it? There us a reason the USSR collapsed. There is a reason Greece is in the dire trouble its in. Do you want to see people rioting in Chicago because they are mad the government stops giving them everything and they might have to do something for a living? I just don't get it. This country has produced the most wealth than all the other countries combined. The government can't great wealth. They just "redistribute" it. The only thing socialism does is take away peoples incentive to be work and be creative. It punishes the producers. It punishes the "rich". I just don't get it.

Aside from politicians of both sides and the cap they do. All you have to do is look at history and compare the standard of living in socialized countries and here. Don't look at free healthcare in Italy, you have to look at the whole picture. Even the poor people have it so much better here than anywhere else. Remember the origin topic, mexicans come here for a reason. They have it so bad here and are so poor) yet the money they send back to Mexico is billions of dollars.


The cummulative effect if government providing so much stuff is a lower standard of living. For EVERYONE. Not just the rich as the politicians make you believe. It punishes everyone.

I never once stated that I was for full socialism. It simply wouldn't work, and crying for socialism is a piece of candy for the poor. I think capitalism, with regulation, is a good system. But with medicine, I make the exception. A government uses are taxes to protect us, to pave roads for us, a postal service, food health regulation, water filtration, schools, etc. etc. Why then can't they provide health insurance? Why is it that the can give us so many things, but not ensure the health of their citizens? It just doesn't make sense to me. Also, the public option that everyone was so against would have only created a competitor for the private companies. No different then public schools. Public schools were available to me, yet I went to private schools from preschool to college. Still had taxes contribute towards public school system, yet I choose the better product, and voted with my money. Which is no different then the choice you would have with a public option.

No hard feelings to you. I'm just passionate about the future of the country. It won't matter pretty soon cause Jesus is coming. When Iran attacks Israel and we don't defend them, its over. All nations will turn against Israel and I guess we are included. I just wouldn't have guessed it would be like this.

Honestly dude I can't possibly respond to this. I am an atheist and their isnt a possible response that I can counter with when Jesus is mentioned that wouldn't offend other people, so I choose to remain silent on that one in a political discussion.

 

[B5150]

Popular L.A. radio show visits Valley in support of SB1070
Reported by: Christina Boomer
Email: [email protected]
Reported by: Eric English
Last Update: 5/06 2:53 pm
Popular L.A. radio show visits Valley in support of SB1070
New movement aims to fight mounting number of AZ boycotts
PHOENIX -- At least one more city has vowed to boycott Arizona, while a California radio station is sending the message, “boycott the boycott.”

On Tuesday, Los Angeles-based FYI 640AM's John and Ken Show broadcast its 2-7 p.m. news talk show live from Arizona’s State Capitol.

"We thought we'd come here and talk truth to our listeners and inspire them to spend money on Arizona companies and Arizona tourism," John Kobylt said.

Their website urges listeners to “Drive to Phoenix and spend a lot! Eat, drink and help support the Arizona economy. Tell all your Arizona friends and family to show up! Help put a stop to illegal immigration, drug cartels and human smugglers!”

Kobylt told ABC15, “Just because there are not public demonstrations by Americans who support the law doesn't mean there isn't passionate support of the law and I think the media coverage has been horribly, massively one-sided.”

Kobylt said California has a stake in this because if the law is effective then they may see undocumented immigrants migrate to California.

The John and Ken Show supports the law and is part of a growing, “boycott the boycott” movement of people supporting Arizona at a time when other communities across the country are urging businesses and cities to cut ties.

That includes West Hollywood.

Just after 8 p.m. on Monday night its city council unanimously approved “A resolution denouncing Arizona's anti-immigration law and calling upon the city manager to immediately suspend official travel to the state of Arizona and develop additional financial sanctions until such time as the new law is revoked."

The resolution states that West Hollywood would identify and review any contracts it might have with Arizona-based businesses and see if they can get the same products or services from someone else.

The Boston Globe is reporting two Boston city council members are also considering a similar resolution this week.

“You can't cancel contracts because you don't like a law some government has passed, that is ridiculous,” said Kobylt.

He feels the boycott craze may the result of news reports that are misleading or omit vital sections of the law.

Navigate over to You Tube and there is no short supply of news reports about SB1070 and amendments to the law under HB2162.

Some of the reports state that the law authorizes police to stop anyone they suspect is in the country illegally and ask to check their immigration documents or prove their U.S. citizenship.

Problem is, they often don’t include these two key words found in the law, “lawful contact”.

Law enforcement can only ask about legal status once they stop someone for something else.

A recent amendment extended that point of contact from a criminal to a civil violation which does give law enforcement even more points of contact, more opportunities to have a lawful reason to stop someone, but the point is someone has to be violating a criminal or civil ordinance before a law enforcement officer can stop them and ask about their legal status.

When it comes to determining their legal status the law also states that race cannot be the only consideration in determining if a person appears to be undocumented.

This detail is also not included in some news reports.

This is in part why Kobylt believes the law is misunderstood

“Either they haven’t read the bill which is irresponsible or they have and they are intentionally misleading people, so of course it would feed this boycott mentality,” he said.

There are many Valley-based community rights groups that are still concerned that in practice the law will operate much like a Sheriff Joe Arpaio crime suppression operation.

Arpaio has often said that he does not racially profile. It is an accusation the Justice Department is currently investigating.

The complaints have often been that the Sheriff targets predominantly Hispanic neighborhoods and then seeks out minor infractions as a means to stop people and ask about their legal status.

This reporter once saw a man on the floor near his car, in handcuffs being detained; the offense according to a deputy, the man honked his horn in a non-emergency situation which is a violation.

The man had been driving by a group of Sheriff Arpaio opponents and honked his horn in support of the protestors.

For many in Maricopa County the Sheriff’s approach is wildly popular.

It is also exhibits how deputies are making lawful contact before asking about immigration status.

Many Hispanic rights groups, and the Anti-Defamation League are also concerned about a man believed to be one of the authors of the new law.

Kris Kobach was first introduced to most Valley residents when Sheriff Arpaio hired him to train all of his deputies in immigration law.

This happened after the federal government pulled the Sheriff’s federal authority that allowed his deputies to enforce federal immigration law.

The 287G agreement was extended to detention officers and deputies booking inmates in the county jail system but not continued for street-level enforcement.

Kobach is a law professor at the University of Missouri, Kansas City, a candidate running for Secretary of State in Kansas and an attorney.

The County Attorney’s office has confirmed Kobach did help them craft the employer sanctions law.

He also appears to have played a role crafting the current controversial immigration law.

Kobach has also done work for a group known as FAIR which stands for Federation for American Immigration Reform.

FAIR spokesman Ira Mehlman said Kobach has worked on cases to include stopping undocumented people from receiving in-state tuition.

Back in February Mehlman told ABC15 that the organization doesn’t oppose immigration but rather "illegal immigration".

But Mark Potok of the Southern Poverty Law Center said FAIR is a hate group.

The Southern Poverty Law Center was founded in the 70’s as a civil rights law firm and is considered the nation’s expert on hate crimes, hate groups and tolerance education.

According to its website FAIR has a, “long history of bigotry, one-sided reporting. Key staff members have ties to white supremacist groups, some are members, and some have spoken at hate group functions. FAIR has accepted more than $1 million from a racist foundation devoted to studies of race and IQ, and to eugenics — the pseudo-science of breeding a better human race that was utterly discredited by the Nazi euthanasia program. It spreads racist conspiracy theories.”

And so there is concern that an attorney with links to FAIR is also playing a role in crafting laws related to immigration in Arizona and training MCSO deputies.

Meantime KMBC, the ABC station in Kansas City, is reporting Kobach’s “role in the Arizona immigration law controversy is causing some backlash at the University of Missouri, Kansas City. KMBC's Micheal Mahoney reported that Kobach, a law professor at UMKC, is attracting the attention of groups that are calling for sanctions. UMKC held a meeting Monday afternoon to listen to the groups' concerns.

Floretino Camacho's concern is whether Kobach is teaching the law or his own views on the law. UMKC has issued a statement that said that Kobach's involvement in the law is not work done on the behalf of the university. The university's provost said that it will defend Kobach's academic freedom rights.”

All of this doesn’t change what the law says in writing which is that law enforcement will only ask about legal status if the person is stopped for something else.

Evelyn Cruz, an attorney and Director for the Immigration Law and Policy Clinic at ASU's College of Law confirmed Arizona's new immigration law does not condone racial profiling.

Kobylt said how on his show he is separating fact versus fiction and hoping to counter misleading news reports by breaking down what the law does and does not say.



FAIR statement regarding SPLS comments
Notwithstanding the relentless McCarthyist effort on the part of the illegal alien advocacy network to discredit our organization, the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) has a 31-year public record of advocacy on immigration issues. That record includes thousands of media appearances and articles, hundreds of studies and reports, and more than one hundred occasions present expert testimony to congressional committees under both Democratic and Republican chairmen.

Any objective assessment of FAIR’s positions on immigration indicates that they are motivated by concern for how they affect the economic, social and environmental interests of the nation. Our positions are shared by large majorities of Americans, according to impartial polls.

Moreover, the Southern Poverty Law Center which is spearheading the attacks against FAIR, is a highly disreputable organization. SPLC’s unethical tactics, in furtherance of its prodigious fundraising operation, have been the subject of journalistic investigations by its hometown newspaper, The Montgomery (Alabama) Advertiser, Harper’s magazine, and The Nation.
Copyright 2010 The E.W. Scripps Co. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Invalid Link Removed

 

[B5150]

Invalid Link Removed

 

[HereToStudy]

Problem is, they often don’t include these two key words found in the law, “lawful contact”.

I addressed this earlier.

Law enforcement can only ask about legal status once they stop someone for something else.

See above, also see below

This reporter once saw a man on the floor near his car, in handcuffs being detained; the offense according to a deputy, the man honked his horn in a non-emergency situation which is a violation.

The man had been driving by a group of Sheriff Arpaio opponents and honked his horn in support of the protestors.

ಠ_ಠ My thoughts in action.....

But Mark Potok of the Southern Poverty Law Center said FAIR is a hate group.

The Southern Poverty Law Center was founded in the 70’s as a civil rights law firm and is considered the nation’s expert on hate crimes, hate groups and tolerance education.

According to its website FAIR has a, “long history of bigotry, one-sided reporting. Key staff members have ties to white supremacist groups, some are members, and some have spoken at hate group functions. FAIR has accepted more than $1 million from a racist foundation devoted to studies of race and IQ, and to eugenics — the pseudo-science of breeding a better human race that was utterly discredited by the Nazi euthanasia program. It spreads racist conspiracy theories.”

All of this doesn’t change what the law says in writing which is that law enforcement will only ask about legal status if the person is stopped for something else.

Which in the previous example has already been proven as a bull**** legal term. In an article that I read, and maybe previously posted here, even if the defendant is illegally stopped, there is no evidence to suppress in terms of a lack of documentation. "Legal contact" can be very negligible. Example using Chicago laws, only cause I am more familiar with them: You can not smoke within 15 feet of a public door when smoking outside. No one enforces this law, but it would be legal contact of an officer to do so. Now this man speaks broken english, and is reading a mexican newspaper...cue the rest....

Evelyn Cruz, an attorney and Director for the Immigration Law and Policy Clinic at ASU's College of Law confirmed Arizona's new immigration law does not condone racial profiling.

Kobylt said how on his show he is separating fact versus fiction and hoping to counter misleading news reports by breaking down what the law does and does not say.

Its not a matter of what it says but how loosely it says it.


I won't address the rest of the FAIR comments, as they seem pretty inline with the shadow author's intentions displayed earlier.

 

[HereToStudy]

On the BP note,

I thought that the GOP were anti-taxation of the American Citizens? I thought that the GOP was for responsibility, and limited government interaction? We hold people accountable for their actions, correct? Or is it really that the GOP is too concerned with specialty interests, bull**** partisan war, and really can give a **** about the citizens they represent, the environment of the country they stand for, or anything besides $$$? I think it is the latter:

You want to bitch about being forced into higher taxes, bitch about this:
Invalid Link Removed
God this **** pisses me off.

 

[EasyEJL]

On the BP note,

I thought that the GOP were anti-taxation of the American Citizens? I thought that the GOP was for responsibility, and limited government interaction? We hold people accountable for their actions, correct? Or is it really that the GOP is too concerned with specialty interests, bull**** partisan war, and really can give a **** about the citizens they represent, the environment of the country they stand for, or anything besides $$$? I think it is the latter:

You want to bitch about being forced into higher taxes, bitch about this:
Invalid Link Removed
God this **** pisses me off.

Whats wrong with waiting? Another ******* democrat trying to make it looks like the republicans are "the party of no" when the republicans are the party of "lets make sure the math works". Multiplying the cap by around 300x as a feel good measure from the democrats doesn't help anything till we know what the cost of the cleanup will be. And as they said, unilaterally raising the cap to $10 billion will put all of the independent companies out of business as they won't be able to get insurance for that amount. And who will be buying their assets? Obama's good friends at BP.

 

[HereToStudy]

Whats wrong with waiting? Another ******* democrat trying to make it looks like the republicans are "the party of no" when the republicans are the party of "lets make sure the math works". Multiplying the cap by around 300x as a feel good measure from the democrats doesn't help anything till we know what the cost of the cleanup will be. And as they said, unilaterally raising the cap to $10 billion will put all of the independent companies out of business as they won't be able to get insurance for that amount. And who will be buying their assets? Obama's good friends at BP.

It shouldn't be capped. If you cause an enviornmental disaster, you should fix it, plain and simple. A bailout that uses tax payers money to support corporations is considered insane by conservatives, but tax payers bailing a corporation out of an enviornmental disaster they have caused is not?

 

[EasyEJL]

It shouldn't be capped. If you cause an enviornmental disaster, you should fix it, plain and simple. A bailout that uses tax payers money to support corporations is considered insane by conservatives, but tax payers bailing a corporation out of an enviornmental disaster they have caused is not?

Theres a cap because "environmental impact" is so difficult a thing to gauge. Its not objective, its subjective. The lamess Obama fools were trying to use the enviromental impact on the endangered polar bears to change emissions and fuel economy for american cars. Totally ludicrous, but what I expect from Obama + the sort that supports him.

 

[Dwight Schrute]

The administration has finally reversed the downward trend and the job market is now in a creation phase. Not to sure how else to handle this.

The administration did absolutely nothing about reversing a trend. Please stop repeating talking points about an economy in which ths President or Congress has little to do with (this applies to almost any President as well).

Ugh, I hate addressing that liberals spend so much money:

Liberals do spend more and want to. They freely admit it. Denying that with some graph representing only the President is comical at best. Reagan had a predominantly Democratic Congress. Clinton had a Republican Congress. Narrowing it down by years says nothing of why and how. This isn't saying Republicans won't spend (hardly) but to say liberals don't or want to spend more is simply ridiculous. Republicans only had control of the House for 10 years out of the last 60. Congress holds the purse strings, not the President.

 

[EasyEJL]

Liberals do spend more and want to. They freely admit it. Denying that with some graph representing only the President is comical at best. Reagan had a predominantly Democratic Congress. Clinton had a Republican Congress. Narrowing it down by years says nothing of why and how. This isn't saying Republicans won't spend but to say liberals don't or want to spend more is simply ridiculous. Republicans only had control of the House for 10 years out of the last 60. Congress hold the purse strings, not the President.

Lets also not forget that any "surplus" shown has been because douchebag presidents have had the CBO counting income from social security taxes as part of general taxes, which should not be the case. The surplus in social security collected vs paid out was supposed to be going into the social security fund so that in a few more years when payout is greater than income due to baby boomers, there is enough to cover it.

 

[HereToStudy]

Theres a cap because "environmental impact" is so difficult a thing to gauge. Its not objective, its subjective. The lamess Obama fools were trying to use the enviromental impact on the endangered polar bears to change emissions and fuel economy for american cars. Totally ludicrous, but what I expect from Obama + the sort that supports him.

So personal responsibility should be out the window because it is hard to guage the amount? With a cap it will be transfered to the taxpayers, which is fundamentally what conservatives are against?

The administration did absolutely nothing about reversing a trend. Please stop repeating talking points about an economy in which ths President or Congress has little to do with (this applies to almost any President as well).

I am open to suggestion then as to how to guage responsibility of jobs? If the trend was still downward, surely it would be Obama's fault?

Liberals do spend more and want to. They freely admit it. Denying that with some graph representing only the President is comical at best. Reagan had a predominantly Democratic Congress. Clinton had a Republican Congress. Narrowing it down by years says nothing of why and how. This isn't saying Republicans won't spend (hardly) but to say liberals don't or want to spend more is simply ridiculous. Republicans only had control of the House for 10 years out of the last 60. Congress holds the purse strings, not the President.

Then I will gladly agree that Obama can and will not be mentioned again in this thread? No more Obama bickering, mentioning of a socialist president, etc....? If the president is constantly bashed (which I said there are reasons to do so, but not as much as the right does), then I will defend matters using the president. If he is just a figurehead to a congress, then lets start talking congress only. Everything bad so far has been blamed on Obama, everything good and he is only a congressional figurehead.

 

[EasyEJL]

So personal responsibility should be out the window because it is hard to guage the amount? With a cap it will be transfered to the taxpayers, which is fundamentally what conservatives are against?

So you are saying that we should just arbitrarily change laws because we feel like it? That congress in the past set up limitations for a reason, and because some bleeding heart feels terrible for the 34 birds that so far have been captured with excessive amounts of oil on them we should ignore prior precedence?

No, it won't be transferred to the taxpayers. What will cost the taxpayers is made up nonsense of "environmental impact" costs, that are the sort of projects that keep loser liberals in their jobs created by loser liberal politicians, like the $2 million study on mosquito breeding in Iowa a few years back.

I and all other fiscal conservatives are all for making BP pay for any direct damages, but not punitive damages, but I don't frankly give a rats ass about 34 birds covered in oil. Animals give birth, animals die thats the way it works. We've left the USS Arizona (and the other ships) sitting in pearl harbor just about 60 years now, still bubbling out fuel + oil (I can post recent pictures) and yet fish have come back to the harbor, and can be seen swimming around.

 

[Dwight Schrute]

I am open to suggestion then as to how to guage responsibility of jobs? If the trend was still downward, surely it would be Obama's fault?

We had 52 straight months of job creation during Bush's terms. Is Bush responsible for that? You want to give him credit for that? No, it was created by a false bubble the same way it was in the 90's (anyone remember the Internet boom and bust around here?). Yeah, that surplus served us well....it was based on a temp boom and bust...similar to real estate. They both created massive amounts of jobs....at what cost.

If you actually think Obama is either responsible for the increase or decrease in jobs within 2 years stemming from a problem that existed for about 20, you're nuts. Its pure political bull****....

The ebb and flow of the economy does not revolve around 4 yr Presidential terms unless that President does something very drastic with Congressional approval. (FDR is probably the most recent).

Its comes dow to the fact the people playing by the rules are smarter than the people creating the rules.

Then I will gladly agree that Obama can and will not be mentioned again in this thread? No more Obama bickering, mentioning of a socialist president, etc....? If the president is constantly bashed (which I said there are reasons to do so, but not as much as the right does), then I will defend matters using the president. If he is just a figurehead to a congress, then lets start talking congress only. Everything bad so far has been blamed on Obama, everything good and he is only a congressional figurehead.

Obama is the leader of a party that is in power. When people say Obama, for the most part they mean the entire administration and party. If they mean the man himself, then they certainly are wrong because his power is limited. Its Obama, Reid and Pelosi to be more accurate...with Reid and Pelosi taking the lions share.

 

[timmmah]

We had 52 straight months of job creation during Bush's terms. Is Bush responsible for that? You want to give him credit for that? No, it was created by a false bubble the same way it was in the 90's (anyone remember the Internet boom and bust around here?). Yeah, that surplus served us well....it was based on a temp boom and bust...similar to real estate. They both created massive amounts of jobs....at what cost.

If you actually think Obama is either responsible for the increase or decrease in jobs within 2 years stemming from a problem that existed for about 20, you're nuts. Its pure political bull****....

This is exactly correct, c'mon HTS, we both know presidents don't create jobs.

 

[HereToStudy]

This is exactly correct, c'mon HTS, we both know presidents don't create jobs.

Which is for the most part true.

(P.S. This is for Wyatt Earp as well)

In the point you are presenting, I do draw myself back, and it was a good point. However, then there really can't be any discussion of politics none the less for jobs, which really doesnt work either...

 

[timmmah]

Presidents don't create jobs, but they can help to create vacancies in the job market. IE: Operation Wetback in the 1950'S

 

[B5150]

One in 12 babies born to illegal immigrants in US

Wednesday, August 11, 2010 9:32:50 PM by IANS ( Leave a comment )

Washington, Aug 12 (IANS) One of about every 12 babies born in the United States in 2008 was the offspring of illegal immigrants, says a new study sharpening a debate over a law that automatically makes them US citizens.
An estimated 340,000 of the 4.3 million babies born in the US in 2008 had parents who were in the country without legal documentation, a Pew Hispanic Centre study released Wednesday concluded.

The study did not give a country-wise break up, but according to official figures there are some 200,000 Indians among over 11 million illegal foreign residents in the US, making them the sixth largest source for unauthorised immigrants with Mexico with 6.7 million (62 per cent) at the top.

The 14th Amendment to the Constitution provides for citizenship by birth but some members of Congress are pushing to change that provision. That effort-rooted in the debate over illegal immigration, particularly of people from Mexico-has created some controversy.

“This has got a lot of attention in the past weeks,” said Jeffrey S. Passel, the study’s author. “The idea was just to put a number on it.”

According to the study, 79 percent of the 5.1 million children of unauthorised immigrants in the United States were born in this country, making them US citizens.

Nearly one of four children born in the United States in 2008 had parents who were immigrants, the Pew study found. Of those, 16 percent of the parents were legal immigrants and 8 percent were in the United States without proper documentation.

More than three-fourths of all unauthorised immigrants in the United States in March 2009 were Latinos, the researcher said. And nearly one of every four children under age 18 in the nation was a Hispanic. That trend is likely to continue, the study concludes.

“Overall, Hispanics who live in the US have higher rates of fertility than do whites, blacks or Asians,” the report states. “And among Hispanics, the foreign born have higher rates of fertility than the native born.”

Meanwhile, a new poll suggested Americans are split right down the middle when it comes to the question of changing the Constitution to prevent children of immigrants from automatically becoming US citizens.

According to a new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation Poll out Wednesday, 49 percent of Americans are in favour of changing that portion of 14th Amendment while 51 percent oppose doing so.

The poll also shows a clear partisan divide on the issue, with 58 percent of Republicans supporting a change while only 39 percent of Democrats do so. Independents are split exactly 50-50.

Several leading Republican senators, including Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and 2008 presidential nominee John McCain, have said they would support holding hearings into the matter as part of the heated debate over immigration.

More at : One in 12 babies born to illegal immigrants in US Invalid Link Removed

 

[B5150]

47,000 Deported Under Fingerprinting Program For Criminals; 12,000 Didn’t Have Crimin

A US Border Patrol agent, second from left, fingerprinted illegal immigrants at a processing center in Nogales, Arizona. (AP Photo)

47,000 people have been removed or deported from the U.S. after the Homeland Security Department sifted through 3 million sets of fingerprints taken from bookings at local jails reports AP News.

About one-quarter of those kicked out of the country did not have criminal records, according to government data obtained by immigration advocacy groups that have filed a lawsuit.

As of Aug. 3, 494 counties and local and state agencies in 27 states were sharing fingerprints from jail bookings through the program.

From October 2008 through June of this year, 46,929 people identified through Secure Communities were removed from the U.S., the documents show. Of those, 12,293 were considered non-criminals.

And immigration rights advocacy organizations are in an uproar that these non-criminal people were deported accusing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) of bypassing dangerous criminals and focusing on non-criminal illegal immigrants which causes a safety risk to everyone.

“ICE has pulled a bait and switch, with local law enforcement spending more time and resources facilitating the deportations of bus boys and gardeners than murderers and rapists and at considerable cost to local community policing strategies, making us all less safe,” said Peter Markowitz, director of the Immigration Justice Clinic at Benjamin N.Cardozo School of Law in New York.

On July 27, the Website Uncover The Truth Ice And Police Collaborations, posted the AP article Immigrant Groups Criticize Fingerprint Initiative. The story details the expansion of the fingerprint program known as Secure Communities despite outcries from immigration rights groups.

According to the article under the Secure Communities program, the fingerprints of everyone who is booked into jail for any crime are run against FBI criminal history records and Department of Homeland Security immigration records to determine who is in the country illegally and whether they’ve been arrested previously. Most jurisdictions are not included in the program, but Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been expanding the initiative.

The article also states that since 2007, 467 jurisdictions in 26 states have joined. ICE has said it plans to have it in every jail in the country by 2013. Secure Communities is currently being phased into the places where the government sees as having the greatest need for it based on population estimates of illegal immigrants and crime statistics.

Under the program, the fingerprints of everyone who is booked into jail for any crime are run against FBI criminal history records and Department of Homeland Security immigration records to determine who is in the country illegally and whether they’ve been arrested previously. Most jurisdictions are not included in the program, but Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been expanding the initiative.

CNN did an expose on Share Community fingerprinting back in Jan’ 2010 in which they challenged law enforcement officials on racial profiling and the fingerprinting program:

Since 2007, 467 jurisdictions in 26 states have joined. ICE has said it plans to have it in every jail in the country by 2013. Secure Communities is currently being phased into the places where the government sees as having the greatest need for it based on population estimates of illegal immigrants and crime statistics.

But all this flies in the face of ICE’s most recent announcement.

The federal agency was profiled in a recent story Lack of resources curtails ICE tracking of illegals, published in the Washington Times. It stated that due to lack of resources ICE was curtailing it’s tracking of illegal aliens and focusing only on apprehending terrorists and criminals. According to the piece this has many of ICE’s rank-and-file agents wondering who then is responsible for tracking down and detaining the millions of other illegal border-crossers and fugitive aliens now in the country. Here’s an excerpt from the article dated August 8, 2010:

The new guidelines are outlined in a June 29 memo from Assistant Secretary John Morton, who heads the agency, to all ICE employees regarding the apprehension, detention and removal of illegal immigrants, noting that the agency “only has resources to remove approximately 400,000 aliens per year, less than 4 percent of the estimated illegal-alien population in the United States.”

Mr. Morton said ICE needed to focus wisely on the limited resources Congress had provided the agency and would “prioritize the apprehension and removal of aliens who only pose a threat to national security and/or public safety, such as criminals and terrorists.”

“With this prioritization, we will ensure that our work has the greatest possible impact and most effectively advances our mission,” Mr. Morton said, adding that the new guidelines were necessary “in light of the large number of administrative violations the agency is charged with addressing and the limited enforcement resources the agency has available.”

Under the directive, ICE officials are authorized under a three-level priority system to use enforcement personnel, detention space and removal resources if they are assured that any deportations that do occur “promote ICE’s highest enforcement priorities; namely, national security, public safety and border security.”

Listed as the agency’s top priority, according to the memo, are illegal immigrants who pose a danger to national security or a risk to public safety; those convicted of violent crimes, both felons and repeat offenders; those older than 16 who participated in organized criminal gangs; and those with outstanding criminal warrants.

It all makes no sense. In one respect ICE is expanding the Share Community fingerprinting program across more states yet supposedly the agency is downsizing. What gives?

We going to keep an eye on coming developments concerning the Share Community fingerprinting issue to find out if ICE will curb the program more to its original intention. It looks though based on the Washington Times story that this may be happening anyway due to budget constraints down the road. But why the Share Community expansion?

 

[B5150]

Fingerprint and deport illegal immigrants?

Arizona has a law that lets local police pull over people and demand papers that prove they’re in this country legally. That creates too much potential for abuse. People who “look” Hispanic are more likely to be rousted. And anyway, since when do Americans who are obeying the law have to carry identity papers they can show to police on demand?

microbial-fingerprints

But just because Arizona’s approach has problems doesn’t mean every law or policy that deals with illegal aliens is somehow an affront to human rights. The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office has decided, for example, to run the fingerprints of people in custody through an immigration database that will identify illegal immigrants who have committed serious crimes.

In the past, such people – who might have been taken into custody for relatively minor offenses – easily could have been released back onto the streets. The new policy, part of a nationwide effort called Secure Communities, is meant to make sure illegal immigrants who have committed serious crimes are deported after the U.S. legal system is through with them.

Some immigrant advocates, such as Florida Immigrant Coalition spokesman Subhash Kateel, say the new policy is just another way to target immigrants for minor offenses and lump it in with the Arizona law as a waste of police resources and a potential catalyst for abuse. According to the coalition, only 12 percent of people deported under the system are serious criminals.

Federal immigration officials dispute that figure. They say the program has flagged 18,000 serious criminals since it was started in 2008 and so far has deported 4,000 of them.

Attempting to round up and deport all illegal immigrants would be futile, a waste of resources and possibly damaging to some local economies. But a program that finds and deports illegal immigrants who have committed serious crimes is properly focused and effective. Immigrant advocates who oppose that are harming their own cause.

 

[B5150]

ICE Agents Vote "No Confidence' in Leaders, Say Amnesty Coming!

ICE Agents Vote 'No Confidence' in Leaders
Monday, 09 Aug 2010 09:36 PM

The union that represents rank-and-file field agents at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has unanimously passed a "vote of no confidence" for the agency's leadership, saying ICE has "abandoned" its core mission of protecting the public to support a political agenda favoring amnesty.

The National Immigration and Customs Enforcement Council of the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents 7,000 ICE agents and employees, voted 259-0 for a resolution saying there was "growing dissatisfaction and concern" over the leadership of Assistant Secretary John Morton, who heads ICE, and Phyllis Coven, assistant director for the agency's office of detention policy and planning.

The resolution said ICE leadership had "abandoned the agency's core mission of enforcing U.S. immigration laws and providing for public safety," instead directing its attention "to campaigning for programs and policies related to amnesty and the creation of a special detention system for foreign nationals that exceeds the care and services provided to most U.S. citizens similarly incarcerated.

"It is the desire of our union … to publicly separate ourselves from the actions of Director Morton and Assistant Director Coven and publicly state that ICE officers and employees do not support Morton or Coven or their misguided and reckless initiatives, which could ultimately put many in America at risk," the union said.

In a strongly worded statement, the union and its affiliated local councils said the integrity of the agency "as well as the public safety" would be "better provided for in the absence of Director Morton and Assistant Director Coven."

The statement also noted that:

• The majority of ICE's enforcement and removal officers are prohibited from making street arrests or enforcing U.S. immigration laws outside of the jail setting.

• Hundreds of ICE officers nationwide perform no law enforcement duties whatsoever because of resource mismanagement within the agency.

• ICE detention reforms have transformed into a detention system aimed at providing resortlike living conditions to criminal aliens based on recommendations not from ICE officers and field managers, but from "special-interest groups."

• The lack of technical expertise and field experience has resulted in a priority of providing bingo nights, dance lessons and hanging plants to criminals, instead of addressing safe and responsible detention reforms for noncriminal individuals and families.

• Unlike any other agency in the nation, ICE officers will be prevented from searching detainees housed in ICE facilities, allowing weapons, drugs and other contraband into detention centers — putting detainees, ICE officers and contract guards at risk.

• Senior leadership ignores reports that ICE internal investigations by the office of professional responsibility conceal agency and supervisor misconduct and are used to retaliate against employees who make whistleblower-type disclosures or question inappropriate policies and procedures.

ICE spokesman Brian Hale said the agency meets regularly with representatives of the union to discuss its goal of ensuring public safety by focusing on finding criminal aliens and removing them from the country.

"We have fundamentally reformed immigration enforcement, and we are removing record numbers of criminal aliens because of it," Mr. Hale said. "Half of the people we have removed so far this year have been convicted criminal aliens — up from 35 percent a year ago.

"We understand the union's reason for engaging in creative collective-bargaining tactics and, regardless, we remain committed to working with them to address substantive issues in the interests of making our communities safer," he said.

ICE documents show that during the first nine months of fiscal 2010, a total of 279,035 noncitizens were removed from the U.S. as a result of ICE enforcement — a 10 percent increase over the total in fiscal 2008, the last fiscal year of the Bush administration.

But according to the union, illegal immigrants now being held in state and local jails seek out ICE agents for deportation to avoid prosecution, conviction and prison terms. It said criminal aliens "openly brag" that they are taking advantage of a broken immigration system and will be back in the United States within days to commit crimes — while U.S. citizens arrested for the same offenses serve prison sentences.

"ICE senior leadership is aware that the system is broken, yet refuses to alert Congress to the severity of the situation and request additional resources to provide better enforcement and support of local agencies," the statement said.

The no-confidence vote, taken in June and made public last week in a letter by the union, said the agency's senior leadership dedicated "more time to campaigning for immigration reforms aimed at large-scale amnesty legislation than advising the American public and federal lawmakers on the severity of the illegal-immigration problems."

The vote, first reported by the Washington Examiner, said Mr. Morton and Ms. Coven also ignored the need for more manpower and resources within the agency.

Rep. Lamar Smith of Texas, ranking Republican on the House Judiciary Committee and a member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, told The Washington Times that the Obama administration is "simply not serious about enforcing all of our immigration laws."

Mr. Smith said ICE doesn't have the resources because it didn't ask for them, adding that "the Obama administration did not request a single new detention bed in their most recent budget request."

"So the limits on detention capacity that they now claim hold them back from further enforcement are of their own making," he said. "What's more, ICE is running under its average daily detention capacity — the Obama administration is not even using all the resources it has."

Michael W. Cutler, a retired 31-year U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) senior criminal investigator and intelligence specialist, said the no-confidence vote "makes it clear that the leadership at ICE has politicized a major component of national security at the behest of the administration."

"It is clear that the marching orders coming from the administration have nothing to do with securing our nation's borders or enforcing the immigration laws," Mr. Cutler said.

"It is an absolute absurdity to believe that our nation can successfully wage a war against terrorists who are determined to enter our nation and then embed themselves in our nation with virtually no fear of being identified, arrested or removed from our country," he said.

Janice Kephart, director of national security policy at the Center for Immigration Studies, described the no-confidence vote in a statement last week as an example of how ICE's mission was being "skewed towards supporting an unflinching goal of amnesty by refusing to allow agents to do their job."

Ms. Kephart, former counsel to the Sept. 11 commission and a nationally recognized border-security authority, suggested that ICE leadership — particularly Mr. Morton — needed to pay attention to the no-confidence vote and the concerns expressed by the rank-and-file agents.

"May I suggest that a significant problem with dismissing a no-confidence vote from your entire employee population is, when you run an agency of 7,000 officers and agents, you can't do your job unless they do theirs?" she said. "Oh wait, that is the whole point, is it not?"

Mr. Morton recently announced new guidelines telling ICE agents to focus on apprehending terrorists and criminals, causing many of agency's rank-and-file agents to wonder who, then, is responsible for tracking down and detaining the millions of other illegal border-crossers and fugitive aliens now in the country.

The new guidelines noted that ICE "only has resources to remove approximately 400,000 aliens per year, less than 4 percent of the estimated illegal-alien population in the United States," and that as a result, it needed to focus wisely on the limited resources Congress had provided the agency.

He said the agency would "prioritize the apprehension and removal of aliens who only pose a threat to national security and/or public safety, such as criminals and terrorists." Lesser priorities were given to foreign nationals caught crossing the border illegally or using phony immigration documents to gain entry, and those identified as fugitives after failing to show up for immigration or deportation hearings.

© Copyright 2010 The Washington Times, LLC

 

[B5150]

Obama Tells ICE to Ignore Most Mexican Illegals

by Jeff Davis

The Obama regime doesn’t really need Congress to give Amnesty to illegal aliens. All they have to do is secretly tell immigration officials to not do their jobs.

The Washington Times reports “New guidance telling U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to focus on apprehending terrorists and criminals has many of ICE’s rank-and-file agents wondering who then is responsible for tracking down and detaining the millions of other illegal border-crossers and fugitive aliens now in the country. The new guidelines are outlined in a June 29 memo from Assistant Secretary John Morton, who heads the agency, to all ICE employees regarding the apprehension, detention and removal of illegal immigrants, noting that the agency only has resources to remove approximately 400,000 aliens per year, less than 4 percent of the estimated illegal-alien population in the United States.”

400,000 per year is better than nothing although it’s a little hard to believe they’re deporting anywhere near that many. You would think they’re deporting (or turning back) large numbers of illegals caught right at the border, assuming they do send those ones back. Imagine how many drunk driving accidents and how much gang crime would be prevented if ICE deported that many.

The article notes “Mr. Morton said ICE needed to focus wisely on the limited resources Congress had provided the agency and would prioritize the apprehension and removal of aliens who only pose a threat to national security and/or public safety, such as criminals and terrorists. ‘With this prioritization, we will ensure that our work has the greatest possible impact and most effectively advances our mission,’ Mr. Morton said, adding that the new guidelines were necessary ‘in light of the large number of administrative violations the agency is charged with addressing and the limited enforcement resources the agency has available.’ ”

In other words, they’re just giving up. From now on, in Obama’s America, there won’t even be any more pretense of enforcing immigration laws. Until they are amnestied and registered as Democrat voters, of course.

This is why Arizona’s immigration law SB1070 is so important. The only way we’ll get rid of large numbers of illegals will be if individual states round them up and put them in prison camps for ICE to deport. (And I bet ICE drags their feet to deport them, obstructing the process about as much as helping it.

Of course, right now an activist liberal judge has held up the law. The Ninth Circuit Court will hear the case next, and those leftists will likely obstruct justice too. Eventually the Supreme Court will likely uphold the law, but justice delayed is justice denied. Arizona passed that law because the state of Arizona was (and still is) experiencing a rash of crime by Mexican drug gangs and the economy of Arizona is being bankrupted by all the hospital, education and other costs from the massive illegal population.

 

[B5150]

ImmigrationCounters.com supports legal immigration and respect for all humanity, yet

Invalid Link Removed

ImmigrationCounters.com provides the key numbers and events resulting from illegal immigration in the United States. Using the latest government and private sources, research and analysis trending data is factored at their individual rates of increase. Topic related links and views are provided for you to become more informed about illegal immigration. For information about the research behind the individual counters, click here Data Sources. ImmigrationCounters.com supports legal immigration and respect for all humanity, yet highlights the significant impacts of illegal immigration.

ImmigrationCounters.com informs the public of the realities of illegal immigration while challenging the myths and misinformation surrounding it. After decades of passively watching this problem grow, Americans are now more aware of the severity of this issue. Our government has demonstrated a complete lack of urgency to control illegal immigration both on the borders and within the interior. Illegal aliens will be as corrupt as the system allows them to be. The problem of illegal immigration doesn't need anymore studies or debates, it needs leadership and enforcement. Because our government can't enforce the existing immigration laws, should we be confident they will manage a much larger comprehensive immigration reform? Because our government has at all levels failed to control illegal immigration, legislators are now addressing the problems at their local levels with bills to manage it incrementally, piece-by-piece, rather than trying to fix the national crisis at once--an impossible task. What most Americans are demanding is to secure the borders, enforce the existing laws inland with no sanctuary status, punish employers who violate employment laws, remove incentives by curbing social services and demand that Latin American leaders discourage illegal entry into our country. We must also address the fact that we're soft on illegal aliens caught in crimes and are not deported. No other country would allow this to continue. 40% of illegals entered legally and in bad faith overstayed their visas. Yet there is still no reliable method to verify if visa overstays have left the country. If we remove the social services and job magnets that attract them into our country, significant self-deportation will occur. Another magnet that must be addressed is the foolish birthright citizenship program that has resulted in millions of babies and parents receiving instant rights and benefits. Public housing and other services are provided for the families through their 'anchor baby' while American citizens are being turned away. This antiquated program must end. Government agencies and officials at all levels must address the costs associated with this kind of abuse. Past mistakes have been made in attempts to fix illegal immigration and our communities can no longer afford these kinds of mistakes.

America must have immigration enforcement that reflects the nation's call to respect our laws in balance with the human side of illegal immigration. This must override the narrow interests of the business lobby, expanding government agencies and the government officials who envision their expanding dependent class and source of votes. Recent language by Senator Reid, Senator Schumer and their peers reveal they're out-of-touch with the realities of illegal immigration. For example, there's nothing "draconian" (according to Sen. Reid) about our immigration laws being enforced, laws which are already the most liberal and inviting in the world. According to Sen. Reid our border security fence project is "a symbol of fear and intolerance." Equally disturbing are comments by Congresswoman Pelosi who expressed her outrage of ICE deporting parents apart from their birthright children while she refuses to address the root cause of that scenario, our government allowing millions of birthright citizens. If our government would stop the practice of birthright citizenships then the family separation scenario would largely end. With emotional platitudes she ignores the cause and expresses disdain towards the hard working enforcement agents trying to do their jobs. These same legislators and their peers are opposed to e-Verify for fear of ID fraud (it is 99% accurate for legal workers and 54% accurate when fraudulent ID numbers are used) while failing to address the fact that ID fraud is already rampant in the illegal alien community. On one hand they don't want businesses validating something as important as the legal right to be employed in our country while on the other hand OSHA enforces how businesses store paint or provides a certain level of lighting. This is a complete failure of priorities.

America cannot suddenly disregard our forefathers' immigration principles simply to appease the U.S. Chamber Of Commerce and the National Council of La Raza. Embracing citizenship and our legal principles are precisely what have made our country successful, stable and unique in the world. These concerns do not represent a selfish interest in protecting our country from the inclusion of healthy and legal immigration; rather, they are about being a nation of laws. These laws and responsibilities apply to everyone without a hint of racism or xenophobia. History cannot be rewound as some activists would like in their "Reconquista," to re-conquer the land (as in the days of the Pueblo People, a land of barrenness before the borders were established). Angry Mexicans should direct their energy towards their own government or towards Spain for the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire and the Spanish colonization of the Americas. Mexico won its independence from Spain, so now they want to abandon the independence they won in Mexico? Why now the anger and attitude of entitlement towards the United States? This is in part due to the Mexican leadership's propaganda of blaming America for their problems.

The pro-amnesty groups would like to compare today's illegals with immigrants from the past, such as the understandably teary eyed migrants who's joy swelled when they approached Ellis Island and the statue of liberty. Today's illegals are an entirely different group that has lied on their visitor's visas, snuck across the border while leaving mountains of debris, committed tax and ID fraud, birthed their anchor babies, worked the social service systems, wired billions of dollars out of our country, gained illegal employment and failed to meet naturalization requirements. Today there are many immigration laws and requirements in place including modern forms of ID and a complex governmental and employment infrastructure. These systems cannot be bypassed. Every developed country has immigration laws. Without them sovereignty and national identity are weakened, security is lost and a perpetual string of problems occur as a result. The United States naturalization laws were established in 1790. Since 1929, illegal entry into the United States has been a federal crime. America is not a place, it is a nation. Its people are not residents, they are citizens.

Anti-enforcement religious organizations try to see a parallel between historical events of migration in the Bible and today's illegal immigration. What they fail to acknowledge is what the Bible says about respect for the law and respect for those in government authority. Those who truly want to obey God will do just that and will realize God's provision in their home countries rather than trying to obtain it through lawlessness in a foreign country. They also fail to acknowledge the fact that even during biblical times becoming a citizen of many countries was actually quite difficult, becoming a citizen of biblical era Rome for example. The American Conference of Catholic Bishops (who are excluded from paying federal income taxes) have been quite aggressive in their push for amnesty. We would encourage them to push for some amnesty to their own pristine Vatican City in Rome, 200 uneducated migrants from Mexico with unknown criminal backgrounds would be a great start.

Most Americans respect the laws while raising their children to do the same, yet they're aware of millions in the country who violate not only immigration laws but virtually every law that exists. Americans notice the unscrupulous businesses that hire them and the government agencies that cater to them at great expense. Our officials are charged with the responsibility of oversight and have failed to do so on a scale unimaginable. It's obvious our officials have allowed this problem to grow un-checked. For example the Border Patrol will approach suspicious individuals walking or driving within about a 20 mile range inland to verify their legal status. However, once illegals make it into our cities and communities where the issues are even greater, they magically become unapproachable and off-limits for fear of "profiling." This is an inconsistent and ineffective policy. Government agencies and lobbyist also have a convenient history of under-estimating statistics and costs. If an automatic path to citizenship (i.e., Amnesty) is offered, government leaders will quickly realize there are significantly more than just 10-11 million in the country--in fact, there are more than 22 million. This would also be an offense to the millions of honest immigrants who have become citizens through the legal process. The opportunity to live and work in America must remain an invited and controlled privilege, not to be gained by backdoor tactics or by paying a small fine.

Illegal immigrants are not "victims" who need us to rescue them. The CIA reports that the Mexican unemployment rate was recently only 4%, lower than 150 other countries and lower than the unemployment rate of the United States. Mexico is ranked #13 in GDP, higher than 172 countries. Mexico is home to the richest man in the world, has nine billionaires and has more millionaires than Germany. Yes, many are hard working and only wanting a better life as those in all countries do. However, the problem is much broader than what some media images suggest (e.g., the harvesting of crops, immigrants feeding their families, or emotional photos of parents deported from their anchor child--an extremely rare event). A significant number are single males with no families to feed. In fact, illegal immigrants know that having an anchor child greatly reduces their chances of being deported. Yet the same media is not sympathetic to American parents separated from their children when they're caught breaking the law. A significant amount of the money being wired to Mexico and Latin America is not for their poor families, it is to pay off the human smugglers and drug cartels back home. Otherwise their family members' safety will be jeopardized.

Americans have witnessed millions of illegals openly engage in undesirable activities while enjoying special treatment that our own citizens don't receive. Such activities include catch-and-release (a type of sanctuary status that even foreign diplomats don't get), failure to appear in court, immigrant gangs, drug and human smuggling, violent crimes, massive identity fraud, illegal voting, driving under the influence, hit-and-run accidents and various other motor vehicle violations, tax free incomes, free social services (including housing and food stamps), free emergency room care, public school enrollments, a full range of medical services for family members due to chain migration--including elderly parents who draw on the healthcare system and maternity care for their anchor babies. As if this weren't enough, they then wave their foreign flags in the streets of America demanding their rights yet they don't have the courage to demonstrate in their native countries to fix their own countries' problems.

Across the nation, District Attorneys routinely cut plea bargains with illegals caught in crimes who aren't deported or incarcerated, only to repeat their crimes in the future. If they agree to be deported (many times agreeing to self-deportation), they often return to the U.S. in short order and are emboldened against our laws and courts. 80% on deportation orders have not been deported. These kinds of activities are hard on the nation and its communities, yet amazingly people are expected to buy the idea that illegal immigration is somehow "good for America." Americans must ask themselves if these are the people they want to reward with citizenship while others have waited in line to be here legally. Americans are learning that the 14th Amendment was not intended to give special benefits to illegal mothers and their birthright citizen babies, this amendment was intended for the children of African slaves. Americans are becoming outraged that their leadership has allowed this amendment to be used as a magnet for illegal immigration.

Are all illegal immigrants bad people? Of course not. Some work hard and try their best to support themselves independently. However, all illegal immigrants have in bad faith violated federal immigration laws. This, in turn, leads to a long string of other violations, impacts on society and attitudes that affect our communities. The illegals themselves often pay a high price for living in the shadows. For example many crimes against illegal immigrants go unreported for fear of deportation. Some in law enforcement claim that asking for the legal status of persons would hinder their ability to reduce crime, claiming that illegals would be afraid to report crimes for fear of deportation. That position contradicts itself because with immigration enforcement the number of illegal aliens committing crimes would be reduced if their total numbers were reduced. Our government has also confused the illegals by not sending a strong message to the world about our laws. Instead the message has been: "If you get across the border, you're 'home free." Now they're stuck in the middle of this problem, trading problems from their home countries for even bigger problems here.

Most illegals will not assimilate because they never planned to or need to. With so many catering to their wishes and needs there's little incentive to assimilate. Instead of becoming Americans, more than any immigrant group in American history they turn their communities into little Mexicos. Preserving ones culture is worthy, pushing your culture onto others while in their country illegally is offensive. Many live quite well here, while others with thrifty lifestyles wire billions of dollars back to their native countries for powerful savings accounts. An entire housing market has evolved in Latin America to build homes from remittance money, paid for in full by cash. With no mortgages these are nice homes that many Americans will never realize themselves. In many cases Americans who lose their jobs and homes are as a result of illegal hiring, the undercutting of prevailing wages, jobs lost to NAFTA and offshore business. Rarely are the labor savings passed onto the American consumers. When the business organizations lobby our elected officials (a partial list is provided on this page) that they need illegals otherwise they can't fill their jobs, this is a self-serving myth. Citizens and legal immigrants would proudly fill those jobs, but at prevailing wage. Business organizations are simply salivating at undercutting the prevailing wages or expanding their consumer markets. This is their shortsighted "rush to the bottom line" at the expense of lost jobs to citizens and eliminating competitive businesses who obey the laws. This is not the American way of healthy competition that encourages progress. Rather, it is the worst form of activity to be found in business. Business lobbyists also fail to consider how this activity shifts numerous social costs onto the nation.

Americans know that one phone call from their President could charge the United States full-time or National Guard military to secure (even under strict rules of engagement) the remaining open-border sections known for crossings. But our previous President capitulated with the Mexican President's request to not use the military to secure our borders, knowing how effective this would be. Internally, because of their activities in the country, more than 600,000 state and local law enforcement officers come into contact with illegal aliens every day. State and local police make up approximately 96 percent of U.S. law enforcement and are an effective force multiplier for immigration enforcement, yet few are using the ICE 287(g) program so the criminals are not being turned over to ICE. This practice must stop. ICE often claims it doesn't have the resources to pick up even those already detained for them, Americans expect more than excuses. If even our military bases' security is now largely contracted out, ICE can certainly contract out drivers in government vehicles to pick up those who simply need to be transported. Because government managers have failed to manage the existing immigration laws, how will they manage a new and greatly expanded immigration program? Because illegal immigrants have failed to follow the existing laws, why would anyone think they'll suddenly come forward and follow more immigration laws or pay fines? Americans also see the inconsistency between "talking tough" about border security while at the same time providing billions of dollars in government services for those in the country illegally. Most agencies don't even bother to ask for their legal status! By providing free services to illegal immigrants, these agencies use up resources that our citizens need--citizens who deserve to have priority. The costs for providing those 'free' services are being shifted over into higher taxes and insurance costs. As a result, many inner city hospitals are closing or moving, schools and agencies are stretched to the limit, taxes are on the increase. The American people can no longer be forced bear the weight of the failed leadership of its neighboring countries. Those countries and their people must now bear that weight for themselves. Immigrants will not value American life if it's quickly found by entering through a back door path in the shadows. All countries must of their own sweat equity and in the open light of day develop better standards and opportunities for themselves, only then will it be embraced, even unto death.

The business lobby for cheap, illegal labor is shortsighted. The undocumented are becoming more selective about the jobs they'll do and how much they're paid. If they're granted legal status they'll soon demand the same prevailing wages and standards that citizens receive, thereby eliminating the key benefit of the business lobby. Most illegal workers are not doing farm labor. Because the Latin American leaders have failed to create a strong middle class, illegal immigration is now hurting the American working class while self-serving businesses and government agencies look the other way. The shortsighted business community harms their own long term interests and that of America by lowering the employment standards instead of raising them. We're seeing the results of this already. The question is if America is going to remain a nation of laws and principles or will the vanishing dollar overrule all else? Will living in America continue to be embraced, or will our country simply become a job site? When laws and principles are allowed to be broken on a scale this large we now find ourselves with repercussions few could have imagined.

 

[southpaw23]

Reading the letter--"reestablish Christian beliefs", that's where I stopped reading, sounds a bit to teabaggerish.

One thing is to focus on a symptom, while thoroughly dismissing the cause. If you leave food outside of your door, what happens? If you offer jobs to the impoverished, they will come. Look at the companies who offered jobs to these individuals, many of which flourished over the past 20 years because they were allowed to build their companies, primarily on the backs of cheap labor. Many of these companies then decided that rather than have individuals come here to work, that it would be much easier to outsource these jobs, American jobs I might add, and not a single person (conservative) gets upset about that, until of course a Mexican shows up in there community. In reading that letter, the intent is clear, "preservation" of culture. Just my two cents.

 

[B5150]

Reading the letter--"reestablish Christian beliefs", that's where I stopped reading, sounds a bit to teabaggerish.

Oh OK. So you stopped reading?

I stopped reading what you had to say after you wrote "teabaggerish". By the way which language is that?

This is not about jobs. This is not anti-immigration. This is about anti-criminals. This is anti-illegal immigration. This is anti-federal border security enforcement.

75%+ of all of the country's citizens support this.

This is about illegal immigration sucking the life out of our health care and welfare and housing system. This is about terrorists walking into our country. This is about coyotes. This is about the security of country.

 

[southpaw23]

Oh OK. So you stopped reading?

I stopped reading what you had to say after you wrote "teabaggerish". By the way which language is that?

This is not about jobs. This is not anti-immigration. This is about anti-criminals. This is anti-illegal immigration. This is anti-federal border security enforcement.

75%+ of all of the country's citizens support this.

This is about illegal immigration sucking the life out of our health care and welfare and housing system. This is about terrorists walking into our country. This is about coyotes. This is about the security of country.

What kind of word is "teabaggerish"? The kind that obviously solicited a response.

The immigration issue appears to be nothing more than a rallying cry for conservatives. Many small to mid-size businesses have been using illegal labor since the 80's, which helped them to grow and create new jobs.

Additionally, since the illegals are undocumented, it's fair to say, that there exists no conclusive data with respect to the percentage of crimes committed by illegals, even Arizona has admitted that they can't come up with any firm statistics, again with respect to illegal immigration and levels of criminality.

It seems okay to criminalize those that accept work (who wouldn't), rather than those that offered the work in the first place, anti-business as liberals are so often labeled. Arizona is also the same state that refused to honor Martin Luther King, a symbol of the civil rights movement, that tells me everything I need to know. I immigrated to this country as a child, my perspective on this issue is quite different. Neither of our perspectives will change. Having visited many places in both South and Central America while in college, taught me many of the attributes that I carry with me today, one of which is being empathetic to the basic need of feeding one's family.

 

[B5150]

What kind of word is "teabaggerish"? The kind that obviously solicited a response.

The immigration issue appears to be nothing more than a rallying cry for conservatives. Many small to mid-size business have been using illegal labor since the 80's.

Additionally, since the illegals are undocumented, it's fair to say, that there exists no conclusive data with respect to the percentage of crimes committed by illegals, even Arizona has admitted that they can't come up with any firm statistics, again with respect to illegal immigration and levels of criminality.

It seems okay to criminalize those that accept work (who wouldn't), rather than those that offered the work in the first place, anti-business as liberals are so often labeled. Arizona is also the same state that refused to honor Martin Luther King, a symbol of the civil rights movement, that tells me everything I need to know. I immigrated to this country as a child, my perspective on this issue is quite different. Neither of our perspectives will change. Having visited many places in both South and Central America while in college, taught me many of the attributes that I carry with me today, one of which is being empathetic to the basic need of feeding one's family.

Hey Teabag, how old are you and where do you live?

 

[southpaw23]

Hey Teabag, how old are you and where do you live?

I grew up in New York, where I earned my undergrad, subsequently moving to Florida to complete my grad studies. Let's try and keep this discussion civil, as internet arguing is not high on my lists of hobbies and/or general interests. I'm 29...30 in a few short weeks.

 

[omni]

All feelings aside. Its about law breakers. If I get caught without a helmet on my motorcycle I get a ticket. Jay walkers get tickets. Murderers get the death penalty or prison. These are the laws of OUR land that we abide by. We have immigration laws. Immigrants are welcome here, not law breakers. Right is right. wrong is wrong. Leave the feelings out of it.

 

[B5150]

I grew up in New York, where I earned my undergrad, subsequently moving to Florida to complete my grad studies. Let's try and keep this discussion civil, as internet arguing is not high on my lists of hobbies and/or general interests. I'm 29...30 in a few short weeks.

I live in Arizona. Your education aside...they are all law breakers, employers and illegals alike, and should be prosecuted and punished.

Joe Arpio does illegal round ups at employers all the time. This is a Federal Law which our president and federal law enforcement has turned a blind eye and ear to.

BTW...the "Teabag" comment was inappropriate but you did opened the dialog with "teabaggerish" No harm no foul.

 

[southpaw23]

Many of the laws provisions were cast aside by a court. Let the Supreme Court decide it the provisions of the law are constitutional, or as many have stated, overreaching in it's authority.

What criteria would be used in order to stop people and ask for their identification? What's to stop people (conservatives) from knocking a light out in a persons car, so that the police are within their legal rights to stop that vehicle? A lot of things needed to be considered before passing that law.

Many businesses have already moved out of Arizona, with many more to follow. In my opinion, this law was enacted as law bent on enforcing nothing more than cultural preservation, using criminality as a means to sell it to general masses. I agree that we need to protect our borders, but this isn't and wasn't the way to do it.

 

[omni]

I live in Arizona. Your education aside...they are all law breakers, employers and illegals, and should be prosecuted and punished.

Joe Arpio does illegal round ups at employers all the time. This is a Federal Law which our president and federal law enforcement has turned a blind eye and ear to.

BTW...the "Teabag" comment was inappropriate but you did opened the dialog with "teabaggerish" No harm no foul.

Round them up and watch how many new businesses and jobs suddenly appear. I like it.

 

[southpaw23]

I live in Arizona. Your education aside...they are all law breakers, employers and illegals alike, and should be prosecuted and punished.

Joe Arpio does illegal round ups at employers all the time. This is a Federal Law which our president and federal law enforcement has turned a blind eye and ear to.

BTW...the "Teabag" comment was inappropriate but you did opened the dialog with "teabaggerish" No harm no foul.

It wasn't my intention to offend anyone, this is simply a provocative topic.

I have attended many of these teaparty rallies, as I reside in the South and they are prevalent here. Many of these rallies were hostile and racist in nature, in fact I recorded a lot of it for my own comedic purposes. I even had a guy attempt to knock a camera out of my hand, while many conservatives consider liberals to be soft, not this one, let's just say the guy who attempted to knock the camera out of my hand, will probably think twice before attempting to do something like that again. I just think that as a whole this group is quite "different". That "teabaggery" word wasn't directed at you, or anyone in particular, just an opinion formed from what I witnessed with my own eyes.

 

[Enantato]

The need to feed your family is a basic animal instinct. Another basic animal instinct is protecting your resources so you can continue to feed your family. It's always been a tug-o-war between groups (animals or humans). Now that it's the 21st century, humankind has advanced. We now not only abide by basic instincts, but also by the rules we make for ourselves, to control society, it separates us from animals. There will never be a logical pro-illegal immigration argument, ever.
I've lived in AZ for 26 years and have seen this situation grow out of control. Coyotes hacking limbs off and sending them to the family for more money; illegal immigrant drunk drivers killing young kids/police officers... These are things that have been considered almost common in the last decade.
On the other hand, I have known a lot of good people who have illegally immigrated here, some are friends. But I wouldn't hesitate for a second to tell them we should put up a wall or increase BP agents or whatever. And I'm sure they wouldn't hesitate to tell me we should, cause it was way too easy getting over here. And we'd laugh about it.
This issue shouldn't be something that divides our country, it should be an obvious issue that needs to be taken care of. If they make it here, it's our fault. We need to do something about it.
I can't stand listening to the liberal media in Washington or Mass talking about a situation that they have no firsthand knowledge of. Conservatives and Liberals alike (in AZ) are in support of this bill so stop trying to blame it on the righties. It's a state problem, requiring a state solution, and should be decided on by the people of that state. As far as I'm concerned, only the people that live in Arizona have a voice in this. The rest of you need a hobby.

 

[Enantato]

And I wasn't directing any of that at anyone in particular, "you" meant "you, in general".

 

[southpaw23]

And I wasn't directing any of that at anyone in particular, "you" meant "you, in general".

Luckily, I like to stray outside of the "general" population, so in that regard my opinion stands. I think many people would look at the issue differently if they just visited 8thstreetlatinas.org.com.net

 

[B5150]

The need to feed your family is a basic animal instinct. Another basic animal instinct is protecting your resources so you can continue to feed your family. It's always been a tug-o-war between groups (animals or humans). Now that it's the 21st century, humankind has advanced. We now not only abide by basic instincts, but also by the rules we make for ourselves, to control society, it separates us from animals. There will never be a logical pro-illegal immigration argument, ever.
I've lived in AZ for 26 years and have seen this situation grow out of control. Coyotes hacking limbs off and sending them to the family for more money; illegal immigrant drunk drivers killing young kids/police officers... These are things that have been considered almost common in the last decade.
On the other hand, I have known a lot of good people who have illegally immigrated here, some are friends. But I wouldn't hesitate for a second to tell them we should put up a wall or increase BP agents or whatever. And I'm sure they wouldn't hesitate to tell me we should, cause it was way too easy getting over here. And we'd laugh about it.
This issue shouldn't be something that divides our country, it should be an obvious issue that needs to be taken care of. If they make it here, it's our fault. We need to do something about it.
I can't stand listening to the liberal media in Washington or Mass talking about a situation that they have no firsthand knowledge of. Conservatives and Liberals alike (in AZ) are in support of this bill so stop trying to blame it on the righties. It's a state problem, requiring a state solution, and should be decided on by the people of that state. As far as I'm concerned, only the people that live in Arizona have a voice in this. The rest of you need a hobby.

Is it illegal or not? Is it a Federal law that goes unenforced?

The ends does not justify the means. Sorry.

Executive Summary

Analysis of the latest Census data indicates that Arizona’s illegal immigrant population is costing the state’s taxpayers about $1.3 billion per year for education, medical care and incarceration. Even if the estimated tax contributions of illegal immigrant workers are subtracted, net outlays still amount to about $1.3 billion per year. The annual fiscal burden borne by Arizonans amounts to more than $700 per household headed by a native-born resident.

This analysis looks specifically at the costs of education, health care and incarceration because they represent the largest cost areas and because a 1994 study conducted by the Urban Institute, which also examined these same costs, provides a useful baseline for comparison ten years later. Other studies have been conducted in the interim, showing trends that support the conclusions of this report.

As this report will note, other significant costs associated with illegal immigration exist and should be taken into account by federal and state officials. But even without accounting for all of the multitude of areas in which costs are being incurred by Arizona taxpayers, the programs analyzed in this study indicate that the burden is substantial and that the costs are rapidly increasing.

The $1.3 billion in costs incurred by Arizona taxpayers is comprised of outlays in the following areas:

* Education. Based on estimates of the illegal immigrant population in Arizona and documented costs of K-12 schooling, Arizonans spend approximately $820 million annually on education for illegal immigrant children and for their U.S.-born siblings.
* Health Care. Uncom-pensated medical outlays for health care provided to the state’s illegal alien population is now estimated at about $400 million a year.
* Incarceration. The cost of incarcerating illegal aliens in Arizona prisons and jails amounts to about $80 million a year (not including the monetary costs of the crimes that led to their incarceration).

The unauthorized immigrant population pays some state and local taxes that go toward offsetting these costs, but they do not come near to matching the expenses. The total of such payments might generously be estimated at $257 million per year.

The fiscal costs of illegal immigration do not end with these three major cost items. The total costs of illegal immigration to the state’s taxpayers would be considerably higher if other costs such as special English instruction, school nutrition programs, or welfare benefits for American workers displaced by illegal alien workers were added into the equation.

 

[Enantato]

One more thing- It's said that 70% of Arizonans support SB1070.
"Hispanics and Latinos (of any race) made up 30.1% of Arizona's population."
You can bet the vast majority of the Hispanic/Latino populace is NOT in support of the bill, purely due to their biased opinion.

 

[southpaw23]

I'm sure the majority of the group pushing for this law also have their share of biases, since 100% of them are conservatives, and more over share the same ethnic make up, just an observation.

 

[EasyEJL]

I'm sure the majority of the group pushing for this law also have their share of biases, since 100% of them are conservatives, and more over share the same ethnic make up, just an observation.

This is enforcement of a law that already exists. The federal government refuses to take care of one of its only 2 responsibilities - defend our border, and regulate interstate commerce. The state is attempting to protect itself by enforcing the law the federal government wont. There is no racial motivation to it, and many hispanics do support it, as they are LEGAL immigrants and went through a good bit of effort to become so. They don't see or understand why someone who managed to cross the rio grande in the back of a pickup truck is going to be offered citizenship.

 

[raulob72]

Is it illegal or not? Is it a Federal law that goes unenforced?

The ends does not justify the means. Sorry.

Executive Summary

Analysis of the latest Census data indicates that Arizona’s illegal immigrant population is costing the state’s taxpayers about $1.3 billion per year for education, medical care and incarceration. Even if the estimated tax contributions of illegal immigrant workers are subtracted, net outlays still amount to about $1.3 billion per year. The annual fiscal burden borne by Arizonans amounts to more than $700 per household headed by a native-born resident.

This analysis looks specifically at the costs of education, health care and incarceration because they represent the largest cost areas and because a 1994 study conducted by the Urban Institute, which also examined these same costs, provides a useful baseline for comparison ten years later. Other studies have been conducted in the interim, showing trends that support the conclusions of this report.

As this report will note, other significant costs associated with illegal immigration exist and should be taken into account by federal and state officials. But even without accounting for all of the multitude of areas in which costs are being incurred by Arizona taxpayers, the programs analyzed in this study indicate that the burden is substantial and that the costs are rapidly increasing.

The $1.3 billion in costs incurred by Arizona taxpayers is comprised of outlays in the following areas:

* Education. Based on estimates of the illegal immigrant population in Arizona and documented costs of K-12 schooling, Arizonans spend approximately $820 million annually on education for illegal immigrant children and for their U.S.-born siblings.
* Health Care. Uncom-pensated medical outlays for health care provided to the state’s illegal alien population is now estimated at about $400 million a year.
* Incarceration. The cost of incarcerating illegal aliens in Arizona prisons and jails amounts to about $80 million a year (not including the monetary costs of the crimes that led to their incarceration).

The unauthorized immigrant population pays some state and local taxes that go toward offsetting these costs, but they do not come near to matching the expenses. The total of such payments might generously be estimated at $257 million per year.

The fiscal costs of illegal immigration do not end with these three major cost items. The total costs of illegal immigration to the state’s taxpayers would be considerably higher if other costs such as special English instruction, school nutrition programs, or welfare benefits for American workers displaced by illegal alien workers were added into the equation.

Most of this ALLIENS,generate taxes that they never collect ,so you really need better numbers to prove that ,anyway ,I am up for more border security,is just sad that this law just feed more HATE against us LATINOS!!a LOT OF US are costumers here and i guess you do not want to lose any costumer!!:sombrero:

 

[Enantato]

You just lost all the latinos costumers!!!:sombrero:

It's a good thing he doesn't own a costume store.

 

[raulob72]

It's a good thing he doesn't own a costume store.

CUSTOMER sorry!!

 

[Enantato]

This is enforcement of a law that already exists. The federal government refuses to take care of one of its only 2 responsibilities - defend our border, and regulate interstate commerce. The state is attempting to protect itself by enforcing the law the federal government wont. There is no racial motivation to it, and many hispanics do support it, as they are LEGAL immigrants and went through a good bit of effort to become so. They don't see or understand why someone who managed to cross the rio grande in the back of a pickup truck is going to be offered citizenship.

Agreed, but I would be careful with using "many", as so often it is misconstrued to mean "most of". There are some "American" Mexicans, who waited on the immigration list and came here honestly. But you have to consider that even these legal immigrants have friends and families struggling to feed themselves back in Mexico... I mean, just take a look at the MLB headlines about SB1070 and the LEGAL immigrant hispanic players that want to boycott Arizona's 2011 All-Star game. Not that we should ever, ever, EVER listen to an athlete's (or rockstar/moviestar/pornstar/whathaveyou) political opinion... That's what pisses me off the most about this country. People think that because you have a podium, your opinion is important.

 

[B5150]

Most of this ALLIENS,generate taxes that they never collect ,so you really need better numbers to prove that ,anyway ,I am up for more border security,is just sad that this law just feed more HATE against us LATINOS!!a LOT OF US are costumers here and i guess you do not want to lose any costumer!!:sombrero:

Again - Ignorant! I do not hate Latinos. I detest illegals of ALL races and religions. The law is not an anti-latino law. It is an anti-illegal immigrant law.

The jails and prisons of Arizona are 75% or more full of illegal Mexicans. Not my fault these Mexicans commit crimes. They were criminals when the illegally crossed our border and entered our country and continue to commit crimes.

 

[B5150]

Foreign 'terrorists' breach U.S. border Illegals coming from Afghanistan, Iran, Egypt

HOMELAND INSECURITY
Foreign 'terrorists' breach U.S. border
Illegals coming from Afghanistan, Iran, Egypt, Pakistan, Sudan, Syria, Yemen
Posted: May 20, 2010
10:55 pm Eastern

By Chelsea Schilling
© 2010 WorldNetDaily

Almost nine years after terrorists murdered 2,751 people on Sept. 11, 2001, the U.S. is still facing a major threat as hundreds of illegal aliens from countries known to support and sponsor terrorism sneak across the U.S.-Mexico border.


U.S. Mexico border in New Mexico. Only a small strand of barbed wire separates the two countries. (photo: 2006 congressional report)

'Special-interest countries' and 'sponsors of terror'

Thousands of illegal aliens apprehended along the 2,000 mile border stretching through California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas aren't even from Mexico. The U.S. Border Patrol calls them "Other Than Mexicans," or OTMs, and many are citizens of countries that are sponsors of terrorism.

Is the American Southwest about to be lost? Read about the realities, in "Conquest of Aztlan"

A 2006 congressional report on border threats, titled "A Line in the Sand: Confronting the Threat at the Southwest Border" and prepared by the House Committee on Homeland Security Subcommittee on Investigations, indicated that 1.2 million illegal aliens were apprehended in 2005 alone, and 165,000 of those were from countries other than Mexico. Approximately 650 were from "special interest countries," or nations the Border Patrol defines as "designated by the intelligence community as countries that could export individuals that could bring harm to our country in the way of terrorism."


Illegal aliens from Central America ride atop a freight train leaving Arriaga, Mexico, en route to the U.S. (photo: Hogar de la Misericordia, or Home of Mercy)

Atlanta's WSB-TV2 aired a segment on U.S. border security after it obtained records from a federal detention center near Phoenix, Ariz., and found current listings for illegal aliens from Afghanistan, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Sudan and Yemen.

"We have left the back door to the United States open," former Rep. J.D. Hayworth told the station. "We have to understand that there are definitely people who mean to do us harm who have crossed thatborder."

WSB-TV 2 published a population breakdown from an Immigration and Customs Enforcement staging facility in Florence, Ariz., dated April 15, 2010, which includes detainees from as far away as Afghanistan, Armenia, Bosnia, Egypt, Ghana, Iraq, Iran, Jordan, Kenya, Morocco, Pakistan, Sudan, Uzbekistan, Yemen, Botswana, Turkey and many othercountries.

Based on U.S. Border Patrol statistics, there were 30,147 OTMs apprehended in fiscal year 2003; 44, 614 in fiscal year 2004; 165,178 in fiscal year 2005; and 108,025 in fiscal year 2006. Most were caught along the U.S. Southwestborder.

According to the Department of Homeland Security's 2008 Yearbook of Immigration Studies, from the Office of Immigration Statistics, federal law enforcement agencies detained 791,568 deportable aliens in fiscal year 2008 – and 5,506 of them were from 14 "special-interest countries."

The State Department lists the following as "special-interest countries": Afghanistan, Algeria, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia and Yemen.

The following "special-interest countries" are listed as sponsors of terror: Cuba, Sudan, Syria and Iran.

The aliens were apprehended "at the borders of the United States, in the interior of the country and at designated sites outside of the United States." The 2008 yearbook lists 791,568 deportable aliens by country (Page 97). Some include:

Afghanistan: 29
Algeria: 41
Cuba: 3,896
Iran: 98
Iraq: 118
Lebanon: 188
Libya: 11
Nigeria: 299
Pakistan: 494
Saudi Arabia: 71
Somalia: 66
Sudan: 46
Syria: 71
Yemen: 78

According to the Government Accountability Office, "The Border Patrol reported that in fiscal year 2008, checkpoints encountered 530 aliens from special-interest countries."

(Story continues below)


Click Here!


'Ever-present threat of terrorist infiltration'

Warning of an "ever-present threat of terrorist infiltration over the Southwest border," the congressional report notes:

* U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigations have revealed that aliens were smuggled from the Middle East to staging areas in Central and South America, before being smuggled illegally into the United States.

* Members of Hezbollah have already entered the United States across the Southwest border.

* U.S. military and intelligence officials believe that Venezuela is emerging as a potential hub of terrorism in the Western Hemisphere. The Venezuelan government is issuing identity documents that could subsequently be used to obtain a U.S. visa and enter the country.

The Texas border – specifically the McAllen area – outpaces the rest of the nation in OTMs and aliens from "special-interest countries."

From Sept. 11, 2001, to 2006, the Department of Homeland Security reported a 41 percent increase in arrests along the Texas/Mexico border of "special-interest aliens" – including aliens from Iran, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Pakistan, Cuba, Brazil, Ecuador, China, Russia, Yemen, Albania, Yugoslavia and Afghanistan – all apprehended in the South Texas region alone.

U.S. immigration authorities have discovered items along the banks of the Rio Grande River that suggest ties to terrorist organizations. In 2006, Sheriff Sigifredo Gonzalez of Zapata County, Texas, reported that officials found Iranian currency in the same area.

Also, a jacket found in Jim Hogg County, Texas, was covered in patches from countries where al-Qaida is known to operate. The patches include an Arabic military badge and one that illustrates an airplane flying into a tower. Another one features a depiction of a lion's head with wings and a parachute. The Arab insignia reads "martyr," "way to eternal life" or "way to immortality."


Patches found along Texas-Mexico border. Patch with Arab insignia on left reads "martyr," "way to enternal life" or "way to immortality." Badge on right features illustration of airplane about to collide with a tower. (photos from 2006 congressional report)

'One way or another, they're all connected'

"Islamic radical groups that support Hamas, Hezbollah and Islamiya Al Gamat are all active in Latin America," the 2006 congressional report states. "These groups generate funds through money laundering, drug trafficking and arms deals, making millions of dollars every year via their multiple illicit activities. These cells reach back to the Middle East and extend to this hemisphere the sophisticates globalsupport structure of international terrorism."

In May 2001, just months before the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, a former Mexican national security adviser and U.N. ambassador, Adolfo Aguilar Zinser, warned, "Spanish and Islamic terrorist groups are using Mexico as a refuge."

The 39-page report notes members of Hezbollah, the Lebanon-based terrorist organization, have already entered the U.S. by way of the Southwestborder.

In 2002, authorities arrested Salim Boughader Mucharrafille, a café owner in Tijuana, Mexico, for smuggling more than 200 Lebanese people into the U.S., including several believed to have ties to Hezbollah.

Also, in March 2005, Mahmoud Youssef Kourani, an illegal alien who had been smuggled across the U.S.-Mexico border after bribing a Mexican consular official in Beirut for a visa, pleaded guilty to providing material support to Hezbollah. Kourani, brother of the Hezbollah chief of military operations in southern Lebanon, lived in Dearborn, Mich., while he solicited funds for Hezbollah terrorists.

Hezbollah relies on "the same criminal weapons smugglers, document traffickers and transportation experts as the drug cartels," Michael Braun, retired assistant administrator and chief of operations at the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, told the Washington Times last year. "They work together. They rely on the same shadow facilitators. One way or another, they are all connected. "

He added, "They'll leverage those relationships to their benefit, to smuggle contraband and humans into the U.S.; in fact, they already are [smuggling]."

In 2006, Colombia's acting attorney general, Jorge Armando Otalora, announced authorities had dismantled a ring that had been producing fake passports to help illegal aliens enter the United States. Colombian officials said the gang was tied to al-Qaida and Hamas militants and that it had supplied the false passports to citizens from Pakistan, Jordan, Iraq, Egypt and othercountries . However, the U.S. Justice Department denied those allegations, saying the gang had connections to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC. Justice Department spokesman Bryan Sierra said, "We are not alleging any connections to any terror organization other than the FARC."

As WND reported in 2007, President Bush's top intelligence aide confirmed that Iraqi terrorists were captured coming into the United States from Mexico.

Just this week, Houston's KHOU-TV 11 reported Homeland Security warned Houston, Texas, police and Harris County Sheriff's deputies that a suspected terrorist may be traveling through the U.S. through Mexico. Mohamed Ali is a suspected member of the terrorist group Al Shabaab, a group based in Somalia with ties to the Somali attacks portrayed in the movie "Blackhawk Down."

Only months ago, Al Shabaab announced its allegiance to al-Qaida and Osama bin Laden.

KHOU-TV's chilling report can be seen below:

Likewise, the station reported, a federal indictment was filed in San Antonio against a Somali man two weeks ago. It alleges Ahmed Muhammed Dhakane led a "large-scale smuggling enterprise," moving east Africans into the U.S., including members of a terrorist group called AIAI. Dhakane is also suspected of recruiting people to help create a Taliban regime.

Shocking likelihood of terrorist infiltration

A 2009 academic study by the Society for Risk Analysis, titled "Analyzing the Homeland Security of the U.S.-Mexico Border," used a mathematical model to predict the likelihood of terrorist infiltration across the border with Mexico.

Two researcher from Stanford University and a third from George Mason University concluded that chances of OTM terrorists entering the U.S. across the southern border are quite high.

According to one calculation, based on assumptions about the extent of border screening and other aspects of domestic interior enforcement, the probability of an OTM terrorist crossing into the United States was 97.3 percent.

A 2005 Congressional Research Service report for Congress warned, "Terrorists and terrorist organizations could leverage these illicit networks to smuggle a person or weapon of mass destruction into the United States, while the large number of aliens attempting to enter the country illegally could potentially provide cover for the terrorists."

Aliens from the Middle East and other parts of the globe are said to travel to South America first, where they learn to speak Spanish. Then they continue up through Mexico and join other illegal aliens as they cross the border – mostly undetected.

According to the 2006 congressional report, federal law-enforcement agencies estimate that only 10 to 30 percent of illegal aliens are actually caught – meaning an estimated 70 to 90 percent enter the U.S. undetected.

"While many illegal aliens cross the border searching for employment, not all illegal aliens are crossing into the United States to find work," the report states. "Law enforcement has stated that some individuals come across the border because they have been forced to leave their home countries due to their criminal activity. These dangerous criminals are fleeing the law in other countries and seeking refuge in the United States."

Invalid Link Removed

 

[B5150]

You just lost all the latinos costumers!!!:sombrero:

The right thing to do is easy when it is free. If it were easy everyone would do it. The right thing is the right thing to do at ALL cost!

Remember!!! A great portion of legal Latino detest illegal Latinos and strongly support SB1070.

 

[raulob72]

The right thing to do is easy when it is free. If it were easy everyone would do it. The right thing is the right thing to do at ALL cost!

Remember!!! A great portion of legal Latino detest illegal Latinos and strongly support SB1070.

Well you and the haters will start with illegals ,and then who is next?, you are and ignorant ,those latinos that support that are the ones with very low education,the ones with college degree never forget where we came from ,you are and IDIOT:sombrero:

 

[B5150]

Well you and the haters will start with illegals ,and then who is next?, you are and ignorant ,those latinos that support that are the ones with very low education,the ones with college degree never forget where we came from ,you are and IDIOT:sombrero:

Really!? Now I'm and idiot?

Always the race card...huh? Right or wrong doesn't apply to illegal Latino does it? We are so lucky that you landscape our yards, build our cinder block fences, clean our hotel rooms that we should just overlook the fact that you drain our health care system, are law breakers and don't pay taxes?

I'm an ignorant idiot?

 

[raulob72]

Really!? Now I'm and idiot?

Always the race card...huh? Right or wrong doesn't apply to illegal Latino does it? We are so lucky that you landscape our yards, build our cinder block fences, clean our hotel rooms that we should just overlook the fact that you drain our health care system, are law breakers and don't pay taxes?

I'm an ignorant idiot?

And NAZI!!!:sombrero: