amnesty

On Election Day Americans across the United States voted to turn control of the United States Senate over to Republicans and increase the number of Republicans in the House of Representatives. Additionally, many supposed “Blue” (Democratic) states elected Republican governors.

About one week before the elections, President Obama admitted that the elections would be, in essence, a referendum on the policies of his administration. One of the most contentious and controversial policy decisions of his administration was to exercise “prosecutorial discretion” to grant lawful status to hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens (DREAMERs) who may be as old as 31 years of age who claim to have entered the United States prior to their 15^th birthday.

Clearly the majority of American voters oppose the president’s agenda – his policies and his actions.

Yet, incredibly, during his first news conference held just after Election Day, President Obama said that he would not attempt to read the “political tea leaves” but would leave it to the journalists and pundits to do that. He might as well have stuffed his fingers in his ears and made it clear that he will not listen to the voices of the citizens of the United States, who had just spoken loud and clearly on this issue. It is beyond belief that any politician would not be concerned about interpreting the results of elections or political polls.

Where immigration and other issues are concerned, the President has, in effect, stated, “Damn the will of the American people, full steam ahead!”

The Washington Post published the transcript of the presidential news conference. Here is one of many key sentences from his prepared statement:

All of us have to give more Americans a reason to feel like the ground is stable beneath their feet, that the future is secure, that there is a path for young people to succeed, and that folks here in Washington are concerned about them.

Our immigration laws were enacted to protect American lives and the jobs of American workers. How would providing millions of illegal aliens with lawful status provide Americans with that which the President claimed should be provided to Americans? Virtually every political candidate promises to “create jobs.” However, each month the number of foreign workers entering the United States is greater than the number of new jobs that are being created. Legalizing unknown millions of heretofore illegal aliens would put these aliens into direct competition with unemployed and underemployed American workers. Even Americans who don’t lose their jobs to foreign competitors will likely suffer wage suppression. It is time for the government to liberate jobs by effectively enforcing the immigration laws. This would, overnight, free up millions of jobs for Americans.

The contradictions in his prepared statement and his responses to questions posed by reporters at that news conference were obvious and disturbing. On the one hand he talked about the need to enable American workers to find good jobs and for American students to be able to afford college educations so that they can get attain their goals and not have to worry about paying off massive student loans. On the other hand, however, he talked about the need to go forward with what he deemed would be “lawful” actions to provide millions of illegal aliens with pathways to lawful status provided that they paid their taxes, learned English and would be put on the infamous “end of the line.” “Beauty,” as the saying goes, “is in the eye of the beholder.” These previous issued executive orders are of questionable legality and raise many questions that have, thus far gone unanswered. This time he may well over-reach and could face many legal challenges.

Of course no one ever asks, where is the end of the line or where the line leads. The point is, that while waiting on the “end of the line,” these aliens would be granted lawful status, giving them an equal standing in the labor pool as lawful immigrants and even, United States citizens. Although the presence of these aliens in the United States represents a violation of law, yet they would be provided with official identity documents and because of the huge number of aliens who would be eligible to participate, there would be no capacity to conduct in-person interviews or field investigations to verify that the information contained in their applications is accurate and truthful. There would be no way to verify when or how they entered the United States, or what is in their backgrounds or their possible affiliations with criminal or terrorist organizations.

The administration appears hell-bent on wielding the President’s infamous phone and pen to undermine America and American workers by undermining the integrity of the immigration system.

However, what remains to be seen is what, if anything, the Congress will do. We need to be concerned about what the “Lame Duck” congress may do and we also need to be just as concerned about what both the Senate and House of Representatives may do when they re-convene in January.

In noting the “Lame Duck” Congress, it is remarkable that when employees are terminated they are almost invariably divested of their access to the computer databases at work before they are handed their “pink slips” to make certain that they not take any retaliatory action against their employer.

Where Congress is concerned, members who have lost their positions have several weeks during that dreaded “Lame Duck” period when they continue to have full authority to act, even though they know that they are no longer going to be held accountable by the electorate. This is an open invitation to a disaster! The time has come to end this lunacy. At the very least, the day after Election Day, members of Congress who were either defeated or decided to not run for re-election should not be able to take official action. Votes on critical issues should not be cast by those who are on their way out the door.

Here is a cautionary note to all members of Congress. The American people have spoken loudly. In just two years every seat in the House of Representatives will be up for election again. One third of all Senate seats will be up for election and the White House will be up for grabs. Clearly the citizens of the United States have awakened from their slumber. Americans, irrespective of political orientation, are angry and are very much paying attention. Immigration is rarely portrayed as it should be. It is not a single issue but a singular issue that impacts virtually every challenge and threat America and Americans face. As I noted in my PFIR policy brief, “The Liberal Case for Effective Immigration Law Enforcement” this is not about “Left” or “Right” but about right or wrong.

When Obama was asked about the nuclear aspirations of Iran and negotiations with the United States, he said that it would be better to not make any deal than make a bad deal. This perspective must be applied to any immigration proposals as well. Read more about Obama Promises (Threatens?) to Take Executive Action on Immigration

Americans who voted in the midterms on Tuesday overwhelming are opposed to President Barack Obama's executive amnesty and do not want foreign workers to take jobs from Americans and legal immigrants who are already here.

Overall, strong "majorities of men (75%), women (74%), whites (79%), blacks (59%), and Hispanics (54%)," in addition to tri - partisan majorities of "self - identified Republicans (92%), Independents (80%), and Democrats (51%)" did not want Obama to enact an executive amnesty on his own. Only 20% of voters wanted Obama to move forward with his executive amnesty. Read more about Midterm Exit Poll: 75% reject executive amnesty, 80% don't want foreign workers taking jobs from Americans

The Obama administration yesterday announced that it is spending $9 million to provide lawyers for some of the young illegal immigrants who flooded across the border earlier this year, but voters strongly believe these illegal immigrants do not have the same legal rights U.S. citizens do.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 68% of Likely U.S. Voters say the new illegal immigrants should not have the same legal rights and protections that U.S. citizens have. Just 19% disagree. Thirteen percent (13%) are not sure. (To see question wording, click here.)

Seventy-one percent (71%) say these illegal newcomers should not be eligible for government services and benefits. Sixteen percent (16%) believe they are entitled to government aid. Again, 13% are undecided.

Sixty-three percent (63%) of voters think the availability of government money and services draws illegal immigrants to the United States. Twenty-one percent (21%) believe this government assistance is not a magnet for illegal immigration, but 15% are not sure. These views are little changed from early March 2010 when we first asked this question.

Thirty-eight percent (38%) now say some of this year’s wave of illegal immigrants have been moved by the federal government to their state. Fifteen percent (15%) say their state hasn’t received any of these illegals, but nearly half (46%) of voters don’t know. The administration refuses to make public where these illegal immigrants are being moved and, in most cases, is not telling local and state officials beforehand.

Just 29% of voters approve of housing these illegal immigrants in their state. Only 34% think the administration needs to release publicly the locations of where the illegal immigrants are going, but a plurality (47%) believes it should get the approval of elected officials in a state before moving them there.

The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on August September 29-30, 2014 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

Most voters think the president wants this latest group of illegal immigrants to stay in this country despite majority support for their quick deportation.

Just 30% of voters give the Obama administration good or excellent marks for its handling of the thousands of illegal immigrant children who have entered the country this year. Forty-seven percent (47%) rate the administration’s handling of the problem as poor. This is unchanged from mid-August.

Fifty-four percent (54%) of Democrats give the administration positive marks for dealing with the latest immigration situation, compared to six percent (6%) of Republicans and 26% of voters not affiliated with either major party.

Democrats, however, tend to agree with the others when it comes to legal rights and government benefits for illegal immigrants but not nearly as strongly. For example, while 89% of GOP voters and 70% of unaffiliateds think illegals should not have the same legal rights and protections that U.S. citizens have, just a plurality (49%) of voters in the president’s party agree.

Similarly, 51% of Democrats do not think illegal immigrants should be eligible for government services and benefits, but that compares to 91% of Republicans and 75% of unaffiliated voters.

Republicans are more aware than the others whether some of the new illegal immigrants have been moved to their state.

Men and women are in general agreement when it comes to legal rights and benefits for these illegal immigrants. Voters under 40 are only slightly more supportive than their elders in both cases.

School districts around the country are beginning to discover where the administration has moved many of the new illegal immigrants, but 53% of all voters don’t believe these youngsters should be allowed to attend local schools. Thirty-two percent (32%) disagree, while 14% are undecided.

Most voters oppose the president’s reported plan to unilaterally grant amnesty to several million illegal immigrants and think Congress should challenge him in court if he goes ahead with it. Consistent with surveying for years, two-out-of-three voters (67%) think securing the border to prevent future illegal immigration should come before amnesty is granted for some illegal immigrants already in this country. Just 26% believe amnesty should come first.

Fifty-seven percent (57%) favor a comprehensive immigration reform plan that would give legal status to those who entered the country illegally but have otherwise obeyed the law – if the border is really secured to prevent future illegal immigration. The problem for immigration reformers is that only 33% think it’s even somewhat likely that the federal government will actually secure the border, with seven percent (7%) who say it’s Very Likely. Read more about Voters Strongly Oppose Legal Rights, Government Benefits for Illegal Immigrants

The strategists who base their political advice on public opinion polls have just had a surprise. A new poll reports that the American people are now more likely to trust Republicans to handle immigration and less likely to trust Democratic plans to offer illegals a path to citizenship (a.k.a. amnesty).

The new survey is decisive; 35 percent say the Republican Party would do a better job on immigration while only 27 percent say the Democrats would. That’s a dramatic reversal from the previous year.

The Wall Street Journal poll also revealed another change in public opinion that should get the attention of candidates. Support for the much-discussed “pathway to citizenship” has dropped significantly from 64 percent in April to 53 percent today.

…

Obama was saying all summer that his plan was to bypass Congress and the Constitution and issue an “executive amnesty” for millions of illegal aliens. His amnesty plan has since changed to be issued only after the 2014 elections so as not to defeat Democrats up for election in November.

His planned amnesty will include work permits, photo IDs, and Social Security numbers for millions of people who entered the U.S. illegally, overstayed their visas, or defrauded U.S. immigration authorities.

As Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) said, “Never in recent memory has the divide between the everyday citizen and the political elite been as wide as it is now.” He says the immigration debate comes down to several major questions:

Does our country have the right to decide who comes to live and work here? Do we have the right to demand that our representatives enforce our laws? Should American workers get priority for jobs?

If your answer is Yes, it is essential to block Obama’s planned executive amnesty and demand that Harry Reid call this up for a vote.

As Sessions said, “Let this sink in. The majority leader of the Senate is bragging that he knows the president will circumvent Congress to issue executive amnesty to millions.” Read more about Immigration Chicanery

Rep. Peter DeFazio has announced a series of town hall meetings to be held during the August recess of Congress. His news release says he "will travel the district to meet with constituents to discuss jobs and transportation legislation, the federal budget, Social Security, Medicare, port dredging and other issues relevant to Oregon’s Fourth Congressional District. The town hall meetings will also give constituents an opportunity to share their opinions and have Rep. DeFazio answer their questions about federal issues.

Meetings are open to members of the public as well as the media.  Remember - Representative Defazio works for you!

Please attend a meeting if possible and express your opinions about Rep. DeFazio’s August 1, 2014 vote to have President Obama continue his lawless course of amnesties for illegal aliens, motivating thousands more to come, while citizens struggle to find jobs and see wages declining due to competition from illegal aliens. Citizens also suffer from the consequences of excessive numbers of visas issued for foreign workers in both professional and non-professional occupations, and from fraud prevalent in the visa program.  If you do attend please let us know if immigration issues were discussed!

The schedule of public meetings follows.

Tuesday, August 12:
Reedsport - 10:30-11:30 AM
Community Building, Reedsport City Hall, 451 Winchester Ave.
　
Bandon - 3:30-4:30 PM
Bandon City Library, Sprague Room, 1204 11th St. SW
　
Gold Beach - 6:00-7:00 PM
Gold Beach City Hall Council Chambers, 29592 Ellensburg Ave.

Wednesday, August 13
　
Brookings - 10:00-11:00 AM
Chetco Activity Center, Rooms A&B, 550 Chetco Lane
　
Port Orford - 1:30-2:30 PM
Port Orford City Hall, 555 W. 20th St.
　
Coos Bay - 5:15-6:15PM
Coos Bay City Hall Council Chambers, 500 Central Ave.

Thursday, August 14
　
North Bend (Focused on Veterans Issues), 11:30-12:30PM
North Bend High School, Hall of Champions, 2323 Pacific St.
　
Springfield - 6:00-7:00PM
Willamalane Center for Sports and Recreation, Ken Long Room, 250 S 32nd St.
　
Monday, August 18

Cottage Grove, 10:00-11:00AM
City Hall, 400 E Main St.
　
Grants Pass - 5:30-6:30PM
Anne Basker Auditorium, 604 NW 6th St.

Tuesday, August 19
　
Myrtle Creek - 1:00-2:00PM
South Umpqua High School Auditorium, 501 Chadwick Lane
　
Roseburg - 5:30-6:30PM
Roseburg City Hall, 900 SE Douglas Ave.
　
Wednesday, August 20
　
Lebanon - 12:00-1:00PM
Lebanon Public Library, Community Meeting Room, 55 Academy St.
　
Albany (Focused on Veterans Issues) - 2:30-3:30PM
American Legion Post 10, 1215 Pacific Blvd. SE
　
Corvallis - 5:15-6:15PM
Corvallis Public Library, 645 NW Monroe Ave.

Thursday, August 21
　
Florence - 11:00-12:00PM
Suislaw Public Library, 1460 9th St.
　
Veneta - 4:00-5:00PM
Veneta City Hall, 88184 8th St.

Monday, August 25
　
Eugene (Focused on Seniors Issues) - 1:30-2:30PM
Petersen Barn, 870 Berntzen Rd.
　
Eugene - 6:30-7:30PM
Hilyard Community Center, 2580 Hilyard St.
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OFIR members will surely have thoughts of their own to express and questions to ask. If you’d like suggestions, here are some issues for discussion with Rep. DeFazio.

1. There have been 7 major amnesties passed by Congress from 1986 to 2000, each resulting in ever-increasing numbers of illegal immigrants. Now another huge amnesty is being pushed. We need enforcement of the immigration laws, not another amnesty. We need E-Verify mandated, to ensure that all employed persons are here legally. E-Verify is accurate and ready for expansion. Will you work to make E-Verify mandatory?

2. Unemployment persists as a major problem in Oregon and U.S. businesses can and do hire illegal aliens at substandard wages in construction, agriculture, hotels, restaurants and more. Why don’t you do more to stop the hiring of illegal aliens?

3. States that have E-Verify laws have seen a decline in the illegal alien population. This shows that many illegal aliens will leave if they cannot find jobs. There’s no need for mass deportations and no one is advocating that. There is no need for another amnesty. Simply require implementation of E-Verify and honest enforcement of other immigration laws. This would bring decreases in numbers of illegal aliens and also discourage others from attempting to enter illegally.

4. Giving benefits to illegal aliens such as driver’s licenses, in-state tuition, etc. legitimizes their presence here and rewards illegal behavior.  Citizenship and the rule of law must be cherished and respected, or our nation is on a slippery slope into the culture of corruption from which many immigrants claim to be escaping.  What are you doing to strengthen U.S. immigration law enforcement?

5. Did you know that between the Censuses of 2000 and 2010, 80% of population growth resulted from immigration (immigrants plus the children of immigrants). The U.S. is already overcrowded. After more than 4 decades of unprecedentedly high immigration, we need a pause, a moratorium on immigration, or we face a steep decline in the quality of life for everyone. Are you willing to say No to the lobbies constantly pushing for amnesties and more immigration?

  Read more about Rep. DeFazio to Host 20 Town Hall Meetings

WASHINGTON — Repudiated at the polls, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor intends to resign his leadership post at the end of next month...

Lawmakers in both parties said the majority leader’s defeat and the prospect of a change within the Republican high command probably signal the demise of immigration legislation along the lines President Barack Obama is seeking....

One Republican said he feared the effects of Cantor’s defeat could be debilitating for the party and the government.

Interviewed on MSNBC, Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., said he was worried that Cantor’s stunning loss may lead to even more congressional gridlock. Asked if he thought immigration legislation was dead, he replied, “I’m concerned that Ted Cruz supporters, Rand Paul supporters, are going to use this as an excuse” to shut down the government...

Brat campaigned as a foe of immigration legislation, and said Cantor was likely to help immigrants living in the United States illegally gain amnesty if given a new term in the House...

The impact of Cantor’s surprise loss on the fate of immigration legislation in the current Congress seemed clear. Conservatives will now be emboldened in their opposition to legislation to create a path to citizenship for immigrants living in the country illegally, and party leaders who are sympathetic to such legislation will likely be less willing to try....

“The Republican Party has been completely swallowed by the tea party. I mean, any debate over whether the tea party controls the Republican Party has ended,” Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida, the Democratic national chair, said on MSNBC.

  Read more about Eric Cantor to surrender House GOP leadership post in July

NOTE: While we can give a sigh of relief for now, we must not let our guard down - for even a moment.  We know that Congress is  likely plotting and planning something for the lame duck session!

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republican leaders intervened Friday to prevent a vote on U.S. immigration legislation, dealing a severe blow to election-year efforts to overhaul the widely denigrated system.

Rep. Jeff Denham labeled his bill the ENLIST Act and said he would seek a vote as an amendment to the popular annual defense bill, the National Defense Authorization Act, or NDAA.

In response, Doug Heye, spokesman for House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, said: "No proposed ENLIST amendments to NDAA will be made in order."

Heye said no stand-alone vote on the measure would be permitted, either.

It was the latest setback for President Barack Obama's efforts to move comprehensive immigration legislation through Congress to boost border security, remake legal worker programs and offer legal status to the estimated 11.5 million people now living here illegally. The Senate passed an immigration bill last year, but it's been stalled in the Republican-led House.

Friday's developments seemed to all but rule out anything happening on the issue this year in the House, if even Denham's limited measure could not advance. Despite a wide coalition of business, labor, religious groups, farmers and others pushing for an immigration overhaul, many individual Republican House members who represent largely white districts have been unmoved.

Cantor, House Speaker John Boehner and other House Republican leaders have insisted they want to advance immigration legislation, though they've rejected the Senate's comprehensive bill. Chances have always looked slim, but the White House and outside advocates saw a window for action over the next several months, before Congress' August recess and November midterm elections.

Denham's measure was widely popular and seen as perhaps the likeliest area for compromise.

But in recent weeks prominent conservative groups, including the Heritage Foundation, announced their opposition. Heritage Action, the group's political arm, announced it would include the vote in its ratings on lawmakers and called Denham's legislation "deplorable."

Cantor himself faces a primary election challenge in the state of Virginia June 10 from a tea party opponent who has criticized the majority leader for not being conservative enough and accused him of supporting amnesty for immigrants living here illegally.

Dave Brat, an economics professor at Randolph-Macon College, is a long-shot to unseat Cantor, but his campaign has won attention and support from conservative leaders such as radio host Laura Ingraham, partly because of his attacks against Cantor over immigration.

Denham's office had no immediate reaction to Cantor's announcement. But in an interview beforehand, Denham, who has a competitive race in his heavily Latino district in central California, said he would keep pushing his legislation regardless of what leadership did.

"I am prepared for a long-term fight on this," he said.

Denham's bill would allow immigrants who were brought to this country on or before Dec. 31, 2011, and were younger than 15 years old to become legal, permanent residents — the first step toward citizenship — through honorable service in the military.

It was co-sponsored by 50 House members, 26 Democrats and 24 Republicans, but an outspoken minority was opposed. Rep. Mo Brooks, a Republican, had warned that "all hell will break loose" if Denham tried to promote the measure.

The Senate could still revive the issue if the Senate Armed Services Committee includes the ENLIST Act in its own version of the defense policy bill, something Sen. Carl Levin, a Democrat, the panel chairman, has indicated was possible. Read more about Republican leaders to block US immigration measure

Hundreds gather in front of the Capitol for the annual May Day Rally & March, which seeks equality for all.

All ages, colors and species showed up for the May Day Rally and March at the Capitol today, demonstrating their support for the cause of equality for all.

Hundreds gathered in the street in front of the seat of state government, holding signs and wearing T-shirts seeking a spotlight for their cause.

There were groups seeking Driver's Cards for residents and urging them to vote for a referendum on the issue in November, while others sought a solid education for all children. Still other groups worked the crowd into a froth for immigration reform and better worker wage and safety protections.

Tim Stoelb, president of the Oregon School Employees Association, stood in front of a table laden with T-shirts and fliers. He and volunteers were there in support of immigration reform, having sent the membership, and anyone else who would listen, fliers and emails urging them to attend the rally and march.

"The issue is important to us because what's going on now is splitting families, which then has a significant impact on children and their ability to learn," Stoelb said. "It's hard for children to focus on their education when they are suffering the emotional trauma of having family members taken from them."

Stoelb said it's time for communities to understand that this an issue that affects more than people of color.

"One child's suffering hurts the entire class because it takes the teacher's time and attention away from the rest of the students," Stoelb said. "Children are impacted through no fault of their own. We want to reclaim the promise of education to help all children succeed."

There were plenty of children with their parents and other adults at the rally. There also were plenty of leashed dogs enjoying the sunshine and constant petting. Children clung to pant legs, scampered across the Capitol steps, and inched curiously toward an incense burner displayed in front of the Titlakawan group. The Aztecs, in full regalia, danced and played drums to lend their support to the idea of equality for all.

The polite crowd used crosswalks, and waved their protest signs in front of Oregon passing motorists until city of Salem public works staff and the Mobile Response Team -- Salem police officers on bicycles -- closed off Court Street NE in front of the Capitol. Also on hand to help with crowd control were Salem Police Department motorcycle officers.

Amid the frenzied crowd, there was much cheering while volunteer signature gathers seized the opportunity to register folks to vote. The Aztec drum group kept a steady beat.

The weather, which in years past has not cooperated, was textbook perfect with plenty of sunshine and a cool breeze. The crowd continued to swell approaching the noon hour, and the start of the march.
  Read more about Capitol May Day rally draws a crowd