Loretta Lynch Confirms: It Is Illegal to Transfer GITMO Detainees to the United States

(Hat tip: KimR) - Testifying in front of the House Appropriations Subcommittee Wednesday, Attorney General Loretta Lynch reiterated that transferring detainees from Guantanamo Bay Prison to the United States is against the law. From the Washington Times: Read more at Townhall.com Read More......

ISSA: 'Operation Choke Point' is Illegal, Must be Dismantled

The Justice Department's “Operation Choke Point” is so flagrantly illegal it cannot continue in any form under the law, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Charman Darrell Issa's staff said in a new report, setting up a constitutional confrontation between the legislative and executive branches of the federal government.
Snip...
DOJ has said the program is targeted at fraud, but the oversight committee report provided evidence the program was "was created by the Justice Department to 'choke out' companies the Administration considers a 'high risk' or otherwise objectionable, despite the fact that they are legal businesses."

Read more at Breitbart Read More......

House Republicans Work Immigration Behind Scenes

AP - Immigration overhaul legislation has been dormant in the House for months, but a few Republicans are working behind the scenes to advance it at a time the Capitol is immersed in a partisan brawl over government spending and President Barack Obama's health care law. ✧ The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Bob Goodlatte, has been discussing possible legal status for the estimated 11 million immigrants living in the U.S. illegally. He's also been working with House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, a fellow Virginia Republican, on a bill offering citizenship to immigrants brought illegally to the U.S. as children. ✧ Reps. Raul Labrador, R-Idaho, and Ted Poe, R-Texas, are working on a plan to create a visa program allowing more lower-skilled workers into the country. Read more at ABC News...

Comments are interesting. --bc Read More......

In a 7-2 decision SCOTUS strikes down Arizona's voter ID requirement

Excerpts - While the court was clear in stating that states cannot add additional identification requirements to the federal forms on their own, it was also clear that the same actions can be taken by state governments if they get the approval of the federal government and the federal courts. ✧ Arizona can ask the federal government to include the extra documents as a state-specific requirement, Scalia said, and take any decision made by the government on that request back to court. Other states have already done so, Scalia said. ✧ The Election Assistance Commission "recently approved a state-specific instruction for Louisiana requiring applicants who lack a Louisiana driver's license, ID card or Social Security number to attach additional documentation to the completed federal form," Scalia said. ✧ Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented from the court's ruling. Read more: Fox News Read More......

House Votes to Overturn Obama Administration No-Deportation Policies

During debate on the Department of Homeland Security's appropriations bill, the House voted [to] cut off funds for implementing Administration policies that shield most illegal aliens from the threat of deportation. The 224-201 vote on an amendment sponsored by Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) could be a harbinger of the difficulties amnesty proponents face in the coming debate over immigration reform. Read More at NumbersUSA... Read More......

Illegals Will be Counted in the U.S. Census

NEWSMAX, 8/11/2009 by Dave Eberhart - California could get nine House seats it doesn’t constitutionally rate because illegal aliens will be counted in 2010, concluded an opinion piece in The Wall Street Journal. ∴ The forthcoming census, which determines the apportionment of House members and Electoral College votes for each state, will be counting all persons physically present in the country -- without regard to the legality of their status. Read more at Newsmax... Read More......

Key senator says immigration revamp possible

BREITBART, 6/24/2009 - [Sen.] Schumer [D-NY] said the environment to rework immigration laws is much better now because Americans are looking for resolution and Republicans recognize "they are headed nowhere" if they can't improve in the polls with Hispanic voters. Read more at Breitbart... Read More......

An issue for the immigration reform debate

Watch testimony on the unpaid costs to a hospital in Martin County Florida for care given to undocumented immigrants. The area is known to be fairly affluent and includes extensive property dedicated to agriculture. See video at Immigration Watchdog. Read More......

Immigrant Population Hits Record 38 Million

From BCRW Nov.-Dec. post
NewsMax, November 28, 2007, Chris Gonsalves wrote,

A new study by the Center for Immigration Studies, based on the latest Census Bureau data, shows the number of immigrants in America, both legal and illegal, has swelled to a record 38 million this year – making one of every eight U.S. residents an immigrant. Continued... Read More......

Re: Sanctuary City?

The federal government, bloggers and media have recently paid some attention to sanctuary cities. We note that ‘sanctuary city’ status for Corvallis held some appeal for two Corvallis City Councilors last spring as shown in their email exchanges archived in the Corvallis City Council Public E-mail Forum. Recent comments have been posted thus renewing interest in this subject. Here are the conversations found on the public forum so far [in order of date/time stamp, earliest to most recent]:

14 May 2007 16:04:32, Message 11138 - From Stuart Wershow (Ward 6) to Mike Beilstein (Ward 5): Re: Sanctuary City?

Mike,
I have read about sanctuary cities. Did you want to ask the council if we wanted to become one? If yes, we might want to put it on the agenda for the next work session in June. Or, we could ask a group like NAACP to make a proposal. What do you want to do?
Stewart
[Article from Washington Post.com, April 10, 2007 included in-full in Mr. Wershow's post: Looking the Other Way on Immigrants Some Cities Buck Federal Policies]

15 May 2007 15:28:22, Message 11148 - Response from Mike Beilstein to Stuart Wershow: Re: Sanctuary City?

Hello Stewart-
I don't intend to make any proposal to the city council. What I would like to do is to have a public forum on the issue, with input from CPD about current policy on immigration issues. For example, under what circumstances would the department notify Immigration enforcement of a person's undocumented status? Does the CPD ever detain suspects on immigration violation charges? Would Immigration (used to be INS, I think it's ICE now.) be informed if a person presented a fake or fraudulently obtained driver's licence in a traffic stop?

I think CAD, CPF, NAACP, or the Multicultural Literacy Center, or gteh Bill of Rights Defence Committee, or ACLU would be potential sponsors for the forum. The target audience would be both the hispanic community and the "civil rights" advocacy community, in addition to policy makers like city council.

We might eventually want to be a "sanctuary city," but there are probably other less radical steps we could take. Before we do anything we need to examine what the need is. The forum would be a way to start assessing the situation.
Thanks for your intetrest.
Mike Beilstein

15 May 2007 18:57:48, Message 11150 - Stuart Wershow to Mike Beilstein: Re: Sanctuary City?

Mike,
Thanks for the feedback. The Forum will be soon making plans for its next year schedule and I will bring this topic up. Another group to have a involved would be the Cesar Chavez Center on campus. The forum has met with them in the past and I have wanted to go back. I believe CPD will be coming to NAACP in July. We could start the conversation with that meeting.
Stewart

24 Sep 2007 07:09:35 -0700, Message 12164 - Enquiry email from Angelo to War 6: Re: (web)What?

Why in the hell would you openy advocate making Corvallis a sanctuary city? First off, it's wrong on so many moral and ethical levels it's not funny, and secondly..you are asking that Corvallis become a haven and a magnet for people who have no problem breaking laws.

Why would you even suggest this? At the very least, it's a career killer for you and anyone who supports the idea. Think of all of the negative media conerage. Is there anything POSITIVE about being a sanctuary city? I can't think of one.

24 Sep 2007 13:24:59 -0700, Message 12169 - Enquiry email from: Gary to Ward 6: Re: (web)Sanctuary city?

Hi, it's a bad idea. Would one make their house a sanctuary house for criminals? Haven't you seen what happens as a result of sanctuary policies? Thanks.

Read More......

June 15: Oregon House Republican News

House Republicans Work to Ban State Government from Hiring Illegal Immigrants

As the federal government expands enforcement of immigration laws at private workplaces, House Republicans today sought an immediate vote on legislation to prohibit the state government and its contractors from hiring illegal immigrants. The caucus moved to withdraw HB 2681 from the House Business and Labor Committee, where the majority Democrats have held the bill without a hearing. While the motion received 30 votes, Democrats squashed the reform for the 2007 session.

"In wake of this week's federal raid in Portland, House Republicans believe both public and private employers should take a hard look at their hiring practices," said Rep. Kim Thatcher (R-Keizer). "We have tried to work in a bipartisan manner to address this problem, but House Democratic leadership is refusing to take action against state agencies who hire illegal aliens."
Several states have passed similar legislation to block illegal workers, and as a result, their agencies are aggressively verifying the legal status of those on state-funded payrolls. Oregon follows the federally mandated "I-9" process when hiring employees, yet its does not take additional precautions to ensure that illegal aliens are not on the state payroll.

"Other states are way ahead of Oregon in adopting state laws to screen out illegal immigrants in their employment programs," said Rep. Linda Flores (R- Clackamas). "Oregon is lagging behind. We need to set an example with our state taxpayer-funded programs."

Rep. Flores said the Department of Administrative Services admits that Oregon does not match a job applicant's name with the Social Security Administration, and they fail to verify that the drivers' license submitted through the I-9 process matches the name of the person on file at the DMV.

"It's known that Oregon looks the other way, including instances where illegal immigrants are hired onto state-subsidized firefighting crews," said House Republican Leader Wayne Scott (R-Canby). "House Republicans believe it's time for the state to halt the practice of directly or indirectly hiring illegal immigrants."

House Republicans demand action while Democrats continue to advance symbolic immigration legislation for political cover. The House today is scheduled to pass HB 3514 to punish private employers who deduct wages paid to illegal immigrants from their taxable income.
Rep. Tom Butler, Vice-Chair of the House Revenue Committee said the bill was unnecessary, "because sophisticated document forgery keeps employers at a disadvantage, such that the feds seldom charge employers with violations under 8 U.S.C. 1324a(f). There have been no such federal cases ever filed in Oregon."

"If the Internal Revenue Service were to audit a taxpayer and discover illegalities, they would already be taking advantage of federal tools to keep these employers from continuing to engage in such improper employment practices," Rep. Butler said. ......

K-12 Education Budget: On Tuesday the House unanimously approved the 2007-09 K-12 education budget to provide $6.245 billion for Oregon's schools. He also voted to provide new investments in the School Improvement Fund, a school grant program that hasn't been funded since 2001.

SB 684: Regulation of "Going out of Business Sales": By a 35 to 22 vote, the House passed SB 684 to require businesses to file a notice of intent with the Secretary of State before conducting a going out of business sale.

SB 694: Special Rights for Pregnant Pigs: By a 32 to 25 vote, the House passed SB 694 to create a Class A violation for confining a pregnant pig. Pregnant pig owners are off the hook if the pig is 1) being transported, 2) part of a rodeo or state or county fair, 3) being slaughtered, 4) part of lawful research, 5) being examined by a veterinarian, or 6) in the seven-day period before the pig farrows (gives birth).

SB 571: Smoking Ban: By a 38 to 21 vote, the House expanded the workplace smoking ban to bars, taverns, bingo halls and other establishments that are currently exempt under the law. House Republicans tried to pass a minority report to protect charities by maintaining the exemption for bingo halls. Democrats rejected the protection. The new law, which is not effective until January 2009, still exempts up to 25 percent of hotel rooms, cigar rooms, and Native American ceremonies.

To read these bills and view vote tallies, click here. Read More......

American Legion Strategy

From Numbers USA: The American Legion – the nation's largest veterans organization - is calling on Congress to reject proposed legislation that would grant "fast track" citizenship, or amnesty, to illegal aliens and to reduce the illegal alien population through aggressive enforcement of immigration laws and stronger border security.

On May 10, the Legion's National Executive Committee outlined a five-point strategy to address illegal immigration, which includes:

• Securing the borders and coastline points of entry;
• Removing the jobs magnet by imposing and enforcing employer sanctions;
• Eliminating most social services benefits for illegal immigrants;
• Promoting a strategy of attrition through enforcement; and
• Effectively screening and tracking foreign visitors in the U.S.

In a press release, National Commander Paul A. Morin said “[The immigration] system is broken and it needs fixing, and the solutions being tossed around by some members of Congress are not in the best interest of this country."

Read More......