border

Murdered by Illegal Aliens 2015: Families Gather in Remembrance

YORBA LINDA, CALIFORNIA — “I’ve been called a traitor” for speaking out against illegal immigration, grieved mother and latina woman Angie Morfin, as she enlightened those gathered at one of many events across the country for the National Remembrance Day for those killed by illegal aliens.

Sabine Durden can be seen in the photo above clutching a small jar containing the ashes of her son Dominic. A twice convicted drunk driver and foreign national illegally present in the United States struck and killed the young 9-1-1 operator on July 12, 2012.

Breitbart News was on scene at the Yorba Linda, California gathering commemorating the National Remembrance Day. Other events occurred in cities across the country including Phoenix, Arizona, Houston, Texas and in New York State.

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Morfin, mother of murdered 13-year-old Ruben Morfin told the crowd, “I’m serving a life sentence.” She shared how her son was shot in the back of the head by an illegal alien. Doctor’s at the hospital told her half of her little boy’s brain was missing. Young Ruben was in the hospital a short time before passing away. Morfin recalled how her son’s murderer fled the country, but after being featured on America’s Most Wanted, was caught in Jalisco, Mexico in 1994 and was finally sentenced.

“I’ve been called a traitor,” Morfin told the crowd gathered. She continued, “I think the best thing that’s happened to us was Donald Trump.”

Brenda Sparks shared the story of her son Eric Zepeda who was killed by an illegal alien. She explained that the individual who hit and killed Zepeda had previously pled guilty to drunk driving three times, but remained in the country and was driving to deliver papers when he hit her son. Zepeda was in a coma for four long weeks before he was taken off of life support. Sparks expressed the shock being told that the offender who was illegally in the country, illegally driving and illegally working delivering papers could only be charged with misdemeanor vehicular homicide without negligence.

Sabine Durden recalled her experience legally immigrating to the United States from Germany to those gathered Sunday. She gladly went through the process and was proud to become a citizen. Years later her only son Dominic, also a legal immigrant, was killed by an illegal alien at just 30 years old. She lovingly told the crowd Dominic’s nickname, “German chocolate.” As a half black young man there was no outcry from activists like those that now herald, “black lives matter.” No big headlines appeared for Durden’s son in the mainstream media.

A statement was read from Kathy Woods, mother of murdered teen Steven Woods. Young Steve was murdered at the beach after a high school football game in San Clemente, California. The statement recalled three cars of gang members, one of which shattered the passenger window of the car the young man was in and plunged a sharpened paint roller into his temple. The statement from Kathy Woods noted that for over three weeks her son lived in the hospital before he died. The media neglected to report that the gang members who attacked him were illegal aliens.

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Many of those families who have lost loved ones to illegal alien crime expressed great thanks for 2016 Presidential candidate Donald Trump for helping spark national conversation over their plight following the death of Kate Steinle in San Francisco last July.

Breitbart News reported from the 2014 National Day of Remembrance event in Temecula California where Moreno, Sparks and Durden spoke alongside the family of murdered young man Jamiel Shaw and Don Rosenberg, father of Drew Rosenberg, killed by an illegal alien.

Mary Ann Mendoza recounted the story of her murdered son Sgt. Brandon Mendoza on the Sunday evening edition of Breitbart News radio with guest host Dan Fluette on SiriusXM 125. Mendoza explained that she lost her son when a three times drunk driver illegal alien, who was on meth, slammed head on into Sgt. Mendoza. She told the listening audience that many elected officials are not listening to the families that have lost family members to illegal alien crime, but that

Rep. Steve King (R-IA) 79% and Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) 96% are among the few who have listened and taken action.

Again and again families relayed — if the killer(s) of their loved ones had been deported, as many of them passed through the hands of the justice system, these Americans would be alive today. Read more about Murdered by Illegal Aliens 2015: Families Gather in Remembrance

Senate Dems block anti-sanctuary city bill

Senate Democrats on Tuesday blocked a Republican-backed bill that would crack down on so-called sanctuary cities by threatening to withhold funds to local governments that don't cooperate with federal immigration officials. 

The bill failed on a 54-45 vote. It needed 60 to advance. 

The Stop Sanctuary Cities Act became a lightning rod issue ahead of the vote, as GOP sponsors tried to peel off just a few Democrats to support it while Democratic leaders blasted the legislation as counterproductive. The White House issued a formal veto threat Tuesday morning, while the chamber's top Democrat tried to discredit the measure by calling it "The Donald Trump Act." ...

"Sanctuary cities and the associated violent crimes by illegal immigrants are reaching a critical point, and we cannot wait any longer to take action to protect Americans here at home," sponsor Sen. David Vitter, R-La., said in a statement. 

The bill was considered months after a young woman's murder in San Francisco allegedly at the hands of an illegal immigrant touched off a national debate over immigration law. 

Vitter had urged colleagues to "remember Kate Steinle's vicious murder and the tens of thousands of crimes committed by illegal immigrants within our borders." 

...The suspect, Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez, had a felony record and had been deported five times --... the city sheriff released him once an old marijuana charge was dropped. San Francisco is among hundreds of so-called sanctuary cities that do not cooperate fully with federal immigration officials 

The White House, though, claimed in a written statement that the bill "fails to offer comprehensive reforms...

According to the White House, it would "essentially turn State and local law enforcement into Federal immigration law enforcement officials, in certain circumstances." 

Only two Democrats voted Tuesday to advance the bill, Sens. Joe Donnelly of Indiana and Joe Manchin of West Virginia. Illinois Sen. Mark Kirk was the only Republican to vote "no." 

The legislation would have made it illegal for local governments to ignore immigration-related detainers -- federal requests to notify them before releasing an illegal immigrant so they can take custody -- and to bar local officials from sharing immigration information with federal agents. 

The bill called for withholding certain federal funding to any local governments that flout the policy. 

The issue, though, became a political football not only on the presidential campaign trail but on Capitol Hill. 

In advance of the vote, Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid said on the floor: 

"This vile legislation might as well be called 'The Donald Trump Act.' Like the disgusting and outrageous language championed by Donald Trump, this legislation paints all immigrants as 'criminals and rapists.'" 

As Congress stalled on the sanctuary city matter, some state governments already are taking action. North Carolina lawmakers recently voted to make their state the first prohibiting such policies at the local government level.

  Read more about Senate Dems block anti-sanctuary city bill

Letters from across the country reveal the frustration of the voting public about illegal immigration

Across the country, citizens are expressing their outrage at elected officials for their lack of action in securing our borders, protecting our jobs and enforcing our immigration laws.

It's critical that we keep the conversation going and demand action to protect our country and our citizens.  Please plan to attend Town Hall meetings in your area, write to your elected officials and submit letters to the editor or call a radio talk show and insist that elected officials be held accountable for policies that allow innocent American citizens to be raped, hit by drunk drivers and even murdered by illegal aliens that are not supposed to be in our country at all.

You're not alone in your anger and frustration.  But, too many have been too silent for so long that it is going to take all of us to keep the conversation going and the pressure on during this election cycle.  HOLD ELECTED OFFICIALS ACCOUNTABLE for their actions that perpetuate the problems we are having.

Below is a compilation of letters from across the country.  Be inspired to write a letter of your own and submit it to a local newspaper.

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New Haven Register
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Letter to the Editor: Murphy wrong on supporting refugees

Posted: 09/20/15, 2:54 PM EDT |

I don’t normally agree with most of what Norm Pattis has to say in his weekly column, but last week’s was on the money. Why do politicians think it’s our responsibility to take in and support people who aren’t happy in their own country when we don’t even take care of our own? And our own illustrious Sen. Chris Murphy said we need to accept 50,000 “refugees” from Syria! He’s very generous with our tax dollars, which I am sure will increase to absorb the cost. Add that to the 11.3 million illegal aliens from Mexico and Central America that they’re trying to give a free pass to already. Where does it end? Maybe Murphy and his compadres should bring them to their houses and support them. We don’t want them! Everyone’s ancestors came here from other countries but they came the right way — legally. This smells exactly like the Jimmy Carter Cuban Boatlift when Castro emptied his prisons and asylums and sent them here ... and we all know how that turned out! Send everyone who is here illegally back to where they came from and tell them to apply to come back the right way. There is a process — make them use it.

— Mike Pearson North Branford

http://www.nhregister.com/opinion/20150920/letter-to-the-editor-murphy-wrong-on-supporting-refugees

The Berkshire Eagle
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Letter: America's compassion will be its downfall

The Berkshire Eagle

Posted: 09/19/2015 12:17:34 PM EDT | Updated:  about 5 hours ago

American's Compassion Will Be Its Downfall

To the editor:

Tony Smith's Sept. 5 letter "Past immigrants earned their status" is so right, especially about the U.S. becoming the planet's homeless shelter. Our country's compassion is used and abused. We help one family, they bring in 10 families, and suck our country dry.

If we as Americans don't stand up for our country and stop this merry-go-round the country will be town down! It's time to do something. Breaking our laws and being illegal is wrong. What would any other country do to an American citizen who breaks their laws? Death, torture, jail? I know one thing for sure — it wouldn't be a free life.

K. Withers Lee

http://www.berkshireeagle.com/letters/ci_28842383/letter-americas-compassion-will-be-its-downfall

The Press-Enterprise

Opinion

LETTERS:

PRESS-ENTERPRISE

Published: Sept. 18, 2015 Updated: 4:27 p.m.

End Anti-Americanism

Re: “Deport illegal aliens, with no exceptions” [Letters, Sept. 7]: I concur wholeheartedly with the widespread opinions expressed by legal citizens everywhere that the time has now come to rid this country of all illegal immigrants who don’t belong here.

The sooner the better.

I’ve heard enough about the wonders of multi-culturism and bilingualism to give me a permanent stomach ache.

What ever happened to English only? Why do we have to put up “dial 1 for English”? Those who foist these anti-American rules on the rest of us need to be escorted out of the country, along with all illegal aliens.

Harry Miller

Hemet

http://www.pe.com/articles/job-780853-illegal-conscience.html

The Florida Times Union
jacksonville.com

Home/Opinion

Monday's Letters:

By Letters from readers Fri, Sep 18, 2015 @ 3:22 pm

NATIONAL SECURITY

Some good, some bad

On the one hand, it appears our nation is doing a good job in stopping terror attacks based on the lack of incidents that actually occur.

Most of the reports that I read name the FBI as the organization that is most active and effective.

But the Department of Homeland Security is largely a hugely expensive joke. It is a politically correct organization where the airport screeners fail to detect a very large percentage of the test cases presented them.

Both the immigration and the border patrol segments of Homeland Security are not fulfilling their missions. But that’s likely through no fault of their own.

The timid leaders we have elected — and the even more timid bureaucrats that they appoint — have effectively neutered our personnel on the front lines.

With a budget of $38 billion, we still haven’t been able to secure the U.S. border.

Why doesn’t someone on the U.S. side demonstrate an “act of love” for this nation by sealing our borders?

It’s time we put out the word to all our southern neighbors that the U.S. will stop those who cross the border illegally.

And that we will use deadly force to ensure the safety and sanctity of this country.

Heaven knows how many bad actors have simply walked into our country because of purchased politicians who value their campaign donors more than personal integrity.

Alec Lawson, captain, U.S. Army (Ret.)

Jacksonville

http://jacksonville.com/opinion/letters-readers/2015-09-18/story/mondays-letters-we-shouldnt-feel-obligated-take-syrian

Mail Tribune

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters to the Editor, Sept. 18

Posted Sep. 18, 2015 at 12:01 AM

End birthright citizenship

Maybe the most laughable canard bleated out by the open borders crowd is, “To eliminate birthright citizenship you’d have to change the Constitution.” But the statement has no basis in reality.

Birthright citizenship can be eliminated by Congress. The clause the border bleaters cling to is: "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States … . But in 1868, when the amendment was adopted, there was no restriction on immigration. It didn’t cover Native Americans until 1924, so citizenship has obviously already been changed legislatively.

Then there are the pesky words, “… subject to the jurisdiction thereof …” Senator Lyman Trumbull, an architect of the amendment, said that meant “not owing allegiance to anybody else.” So it certainly wouldn’t apply to Mexican migrants, who wave Mexican flags on California streets all the time. But the final nail in the open borders folks’ coffin is Section 5, which states: "The Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article."

The U.S. and Canada are the only major modern countries in the world who still grant birthright citizenship. It’s way past time to change that.

Robert Bennett

Grants Pass

http://www.mailtribune.com/article/20150918/OPINION/150919610

TribLIVE | Opinion/The Review

From whom they flee

Letter to the Editor
Thursday, Sept. 17, 2015, 8:55 p.m.
Updated 17 minutes ago

The refugee crisis in Europe and the U.S. exposes the lack of common sense in the Western world.

Moral leaders are quick to criticize European and U.S. governments for not doing enough for refugees coming to their countries. But where is the moral outrage against the corrupt, warmongering and dysfunctional leaders in the Middle East, Africa and Latin America who have created this crisis?

Why is the U.S. criticized for not wanting illegal immigrants while Mexican and other Latin American leaders are not criticized for creating circumstances causing their citizens to flee? Perhaps it's safer to criticize good guys than bad guys.

This situation has the same moral equivalence as members of a dysfunctional family living next door, demanding to move into your house to be fed and clothed at your expense, and creating turmoil in your household. Who would stand for this?

Wouldn't it be less expensive and more humane to militarily engage the bad guys in charge of refugee-producing countries than to allow the turmoil that massive world migration will bring to stable countries? It will take decades to recover from the disruption and upheaval from migration.

Allowing unchecked immigration is insane and ensures the crisis will continue indefinitely. It's a shame that we don't have world leaders with the courage to solve this problem!

Dave Majernik

Plum

The writer is vice chairman of the Allegheny County Republican Committee.

http://triblive.com/opinion/letters/9055630-74/countries-guys-leaders#axzz3m2br8NNu

Ledger-Enquirer

Letters to the Editor

September 17, 2015

Lawbreakers by any name

I read Wilkinson's column in the paper and I agree that our immigration policy is flawed. However, he described the Mexican bad guy as "an undocumented immigrant," and I disagree with that. Such a description of Mexican citizens unlawfully present in our country may now be politically correct, but in my opinion it is incorrect.

Thousands of Mexicans willfully break our laws every day and surreptitiously cross our southern border, and they should only be referred to as "illegal aliens." Regardless of why Mexicans sneak into our country, their sneaking should not be tolerated by our governments (local, state and national), and when someone is found to be here illegally, they should be considered a criminal and treated accordingly. I know that many illegals come here to become American citizens, but I believe most want to keep their allegiance to Mexico and only desire the economic benefits of our rich country. It doesn't matter if they're behaving themselves while they're here. They're here illegally.

We can't immediately fine and deport all the illegal aliens, but if we withhold from them all of our social benefits, including educational and medical (except in special cases), they'll soon deport themselves.

We should also jail every businessman who profits from the low wages he pays to an illegal. My grandfather legally came from Germany to have a better life here, and he found it for himself and his posterity. All Mexicans should be required to do the same. If our present politicians won't fix our immigration problems, then we need to cast our votes in the next election for the folks who will.

Carl "Bud" Paepcke

Columbus

http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/opinion/letters-to-the-editor/article35606901.html

BUCKS COUNTY
Courier Times

Opinion | Bucks County | Letters to the Editor

Enforce the immigration laws

Posted: Thursday, September 17, 2015 12:15 am

Everyone who doesn't like what Donald Trump says about immigration are the same people who have ignored the problem for decades.

We have laws that allow people from foreign countries to attain citizenship legally. Occasionally there is news about new citizens. I actually attended one of these naturalization ceremonies in 1973 when my wife became a U.S. citizen. These people did what the law required. Just because we are so close to Mexico and South America it has become a problem with the politicians ignoring the people crossing the border and living here illegally. Businesses are to blame also for employing illegals for cheap wages.

Every politician from both parties is afraid to do anything about the problem because it will offend the Hispanic population. How ridiculous that is to let laws continue to be ignored. Obeying political correctness so we don't offend any minority is an epidemic in this country. We need someone who will actually do something about this problem, which is beyond critical as this point.

No other candidate is willing to address the problem and offer a solution. Amnesty for the illegals would cause a backlash of gigantic proportions and is a slap in the face of the people who obeyed the law and became U. S. citizens.

Both political parties created this problem and the Democrats won't do anything because the illegals are part of their government-dependency base. Likewise, Republican business owners would lose the cheap labor they provide. There are also the criminals who are shipping in illegal drugs and killing people. We have more than enough of our home grown criminals and don't need any more here illegally.

We definitely need a political outsider to lead this country after the eight years of damage done by the incompetency of the present administration. There are three Republicans who are not career politicians running for President. Hopefully we will chose right this time so this country can be great again and not the Third World country we are headed for.

Ron Bolvin

Middletown

http://www.buckscountycouriertimes.com/opinion/letters/enforce-the-immigration-laws/article_f745eee8-1089-5828-ada9-cda451badf35.html

ORANGE COUNTY
REGISTER

Opinion

Letters: A simple immigration policy

Sept. 16, 2015

Updated 12:00 a.m.

By ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Our country was founded by legal immigrants and could be destroyed by illegal immigrants.

According to a study conducted by the Federation of America Immigration Reform, the cost of harboring illegal immigrants in the United States is a staggering $113 billion a year – an average of $1,117 for every household in America – and it is growing rapidly. Supporting illegal immigrants has caused our country to become almost insolvent.

I have read many of the expensive strategies proposed by our presidential candidates to keep illegal immigrants out of this country. However, they will only put us in more debt, and are not assured to be very effective.

We all know that illegal immigrants come to this country to improve their way of life. They all seek benefits without payments, better living conditions and employment. All the benefits that they receive are too numerous to mention. I have an inexpensive solution to solve the problem of illegal immigrants entering this country: Discontinue all illegal immigrant benefits.

Any landlord that rents an apartment to an illegal immigrant will be severely punished financially. Any tenant that allows illegal immigrants to move into their residence will be severely punished financially. Any employer that hires an illegal immigrant will be severely punished financially.

This will take away most of the incentives for immigrants to enter this country illegally and is not expensive to implement. I don’t know why none of the presidential candidates have mentioned this as opposed to building a wall and providing man power to service the wall which will be very expensive and not assured to keep illegal immigrants out of this country. It appears so simple. Am I missing something?

Paul Rubenstein

Mission Viejo

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/illegal-682798-immigrants-country.html

Minnesota Daily

Opinion » Letters to the Editor

Comment on “We need to tell modern immigrants’ stories”

By Dave Francis, Daily reader September 16, 2015

All of the presidential candidates have little to say about the illegal immigrant problem. They are all close-mouthed and probably scared of their own shadows. 

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is completely different from the pack. He is not hindered in saying anything true — and that is exactly what people want to hear. Rhetoric is finally old hat, and the majority of the population is not listening to it anymore. They want change!

Trump’s greatest benefit to average Americans is that no one can buy his loyalty. … We want a true outsider who is not looking for a handout to fill campaign or personal bank accounts. 

I believe Trump will bring back all the jobs to our country again — jobs for every genuine new American and jobs for people who have given up and can hardly put food on the table. … No matter who you are, as long as you’re here in the United States legally, then you will be eligible for a job. …

It’s about time employers were held more accountable for hiring illegal workers. … Every American of any race, color or religion should be first for any job. …

Brandon Judd, president of the National Border Patrol Council, testified before the House Oversight Committee a few weeks ago. He said that the agency only controls approximately 40 percent of the border between the United States and Mexico. … Before that committee, border patrol agents testified about the brutal conditions facing them. …

Why are so many of our tax dollars spent to defend foreign countries? American citizens should be able to travel highways in southern Arizona without fearing for their lives. 

http://www.mndaily.com/opinion/letters-editor/2015/09/16/comment-%E2%80%9Cwe-need-tell-modern-immigrants%E2%80%99-stories%E2%80%9D

M Michigan
LIVE

Letter: Government should penalizes those who hire illegal immigrants

By MLive/Jackson Citizen Patriot opinion
on September 16, 2015 at 9:55 AM, updated September 16, 2015 at 9:59 AM

With all the supposedly intelligent politicians in Washington, I am amazed at all the talk about building a wall at the border between the United States and Mexico.

One need only look at the map and recognize that the Gulf of Mexico provides and easy way to go around the end of any wall, fence, ditch, etc.

Our government needs to arrest and penalize any American or American business which hires an illegal immigrant.

They should charge the culprit and then send the illegal person back to Mexico or any other home country.

It can't solve the problem overnight, but it should be an ongoing procedure. This is a country of laws which attempts to safeguard its citizens. I fought in WWII for just that purpose.

William W. Harper / Jackson

http://www.mlive.com/opinion/jackson/index.ssf/2015/09/letter_government_should_penal.html

Capital Gazette

Letters: Immigration

SEPTEMBER 15, 2015

Immigration

A nation is defined by borders, culture, language. Without borders, our nation is vulnerable to the influx of illegal immigrants, who will bring drugs, cause crimes and cause deaths by autos, destroying the identity of our country.

Our nation is in the process of this transition. Our Judeo-Christian culture is under attack from without and from within. Illegal immigrants are coming to America, setting up their own enclaves, refusing to blend in with the American mosaic.

Years ago, immigrants would come to our country and would become part of our communities. This is not so today.

For years, English was the preferred language in our country — not so today. I have seen notes from providers that can be in five languages. Is this the modern-day Tower of Babel? If we are not willing to fight for the values that made America great, we will become a Third World nation — our demise is imminent.

WILL HUBBAR

Glen Burnie

http://www.capitalgazette.com/opinion/letters/ph-ac-ce-letters-0915-20150915-story.html

The Jamestown Sun

Letters

Trump may be right about children of undocumented immigrants

By Roland Riemers from Grand Forks Today at [September 14, 2015] 6:32 a.m.

Donald Trump has stated that babies of illegal immigrants should not be considered citizens. I believe he is right.

The current legal standard is based on the 1898 case of U.S. v. Wong. Wong was born in San Francisco to Chinese parents who were legally residents there but not U.S. citizens. The Supreme Court ruled Wong was a born U.S. citizen under the 14th Amendment.

This ruling is often used as the basis for claiming anyone born here is now a citizen. But that is not what the ruling says. Under the 14th Amendment, parents have to be subject to the jurisdiction of the U.S., and Wong’s parents met that requirement easily. But not so with modern “anchor babies” whose parents are not legal residents of the U.S.

So, how do we fix this? Congress is free to define wording to give effect to the constitutional provision, “subject to the jurisdiction of the United States,” and has attempted to do so with the Birthright Citizenship Act of 2009 and 2011, but neither bill was even discussed in Congress.

While I am not a Trump supporter, it does appear that once again Trump may be proven right while the majority are again proven wrong.

(Riemers is chairman of the North Dakota Libertarian Party.)

http://www.jamestownsun.com/letters/3838436-trump-may-be-right-about-children-undocumented-immigrants

STATESVILLE
Record & Landmark

Opinion

LETTER: Amnesty is wrong for illegal immigrants

Posted: Monday, September 14, 2015 3:03 pm

In response to “Another View” in Monday’s Statesville R&L, the “Balancing opportunity and border control," did anyone question why people are fleeing their own country to come here? Might the reason be they did not want to follow their country’s laws? Could it be they did not like being told what to do in their own country? And with that kind of attitude, not liking their own country’s laws, why would American citizens not expect them to follow the laws of United States? And that is the problem, is it not?

The article says, “Trump’s solution might sound simple, but it isn’t, and he undoubtedly knows it. So why does he say it? He says it because it resonates with a large segment of the American public.” And I believe the paper’s statement is correct. But it gets complicated when the care of their children becomes a weapon of choice by those that do not want to fight for or follow our laws. Some say the children are our future, and it takes a village to raise a child!

OK, if those children are our future, what are we teaching them when exceptions to our laws are being made? Aren’t the illegal parents, who are now responsible for their American kids, being held responsible? It becomes simple if illegal aliens become legal, through existing laws, for their American children's sake. See? Simple! Amnesty becomes a get-out-of-jail card for illegal aliens and a bad example of becoming a law-abiding American citizen.

Troy D. Reed

Mooresville

http://www.statesville.com/opinion/letter-amnesty-is-wrong-for-illegal-immigrants/article_911c3d20-5b12-11e5-898c-ef6d26b3c28d.html

The Gazette

G LETTERS:

By: Letters
Published: September 14, 2015

Immigration's environmental cost

In the discussion of immigration, the environmental cost is seldom addressed. Every year we add 1 million legal immigrants to our population. In less than five years, that is like adding another "Colorado." The impact of a million initial immigrants is misleading as they reproduce and eventually become 2 million. The number of illegal aliens in the United States is guessed at11 million. That is as great as the population of Washington and Oregon.

Our population is 320 million. The Census Bureau estimates at current immigration rates we will have 399 million by 2050. Its high estimate is 458 million. Compare these increases to just 323,000,000 with zero immigration.

So what is the environmental cost of immigration? The loss of wildlife habitat, agricultural land and open space is especially great. Every hour of every day we lose 50 acres of farm and ranch lands to development. Between 1982 and 2010, we lost 24 million acres of agricultural land to urban sprawl, highways and malls to accommodate our growing population. Increased demands for water is a serious problem difficult to solve. Pollution, carbon footprint and energy demands increase with population increases.

Few in power care about the environmental cost of immigration. The Republicans want cheap labor and associated campaign contributions. The Democrats want the votes from Third World immigrants. Environmental groups are no longer opposed to immigration for the same reason.

If we don't reduce immigration the environmental cost will be huge. We need to end the anchor baby hedge, stop 'chain immigration', secure our southern border, crack down on expired visas, and reduce legal immigration to no more than 100,000. Unless the average American rises up against our policy of massive immigration, I see no hope for the long-term quality of our environment.

Robert Hooper

Montrose

http://gazette.com/letters-intersection-needs-caution-light-questioning-proposed-student-housing/article/1559277

The Tennessean

A GANNETT COMPANY

Letters to the editor, Sept. 15: Donald Trump

11:10 p.m. CDT September 13, 2015

Readers sound off on Donald Trump's presidential run.

Trump seeks greatness

The authors of the Tennessee Voices article bashing Donald Trump on immigration were not truthful in their representation of Trump’s stance on the subject. The first sentence in the article states that “Trump and his anti-immigrant rhetoric” should be rejected by Nashvillians.

I would agree with authors Dorn, Breen and Turner if this were a true statement, but it is not.

Mr. Trump has repeatedly said that he loves immigrants from all countries, but immigrants to this country should obey the laws of the United States. The fact is that illegal immigrants are in this country because they broke the law.

Left-wing politicians and liberals state that we are a country of laws, but they want to pick and choose the laws they wish to enforce.

If the immigration laws that are now in place had been enforced, and our sovereign borders were secure, we would not have the massive influx of illegal immigrants, which is unfair to all citizens, especially those that played by the rules and immigrated to the United States legally.

Trump is sending a message that is resonating all across this land and it is time to “Make America Great Again."

Tom Wirth

Brentwood 37027

http://www.tennessean.com/story/opinion/readers/2015/09/14/letters-editor-sept-donald-trump/72237472/


 


  Read more about Letters from across the country reveal the frustration of the voting public about illegal immigration

Debate Prep on Immigration

By Mark Krikorian, Center for Immigration Studies, September 16, 2015

Participants in the two Republican debates later today are certain to be asked about their views on illegal immigration and the Middle Eastern refugee crisis. The answers are not difficult, and yet one candidate after another flubs them. Here's a template for answering the first question, with the second to follow.

Actually fixing immigration will be hard work, but explaining it isn't – or shouldn't be. And yet, from Trump's saying whatever pops into his head, to Carson's frivolous assurance that he would seal the border within a single year, to Jeb's detailed plan to enforce the rules after amnestying all the illegals, and to the clichéd boasts by the rest that they will "secure the border," the candidates' responses to illegal immigration queries do not speak well to their political skills.

At the risk of sounding like a middle-school English teacher, they need to introduce the problem, offer three concrete solutions that are understandable, hold together, and make sense both politically and as policy, and then conclude by showing how they point to the future:

Well, Hugh, I'm glad you asked that question. Until we have in place an enforcement system that will prevent the settlement of another 12 million illegal aliens, we're not even going to talk about what to do with the ones already here. We're not going to amnesty them and we're not going to launch a dragnet to find them. If they're arrested for something else, I'll make sure we have resources in place to deport them, but in the meantime my administration would focus on the three things we need to have in place before we even talk about the illegals already here.

First, we need nationwide E-Verify, so when a company hires somebody, and is filling out the paperwork for Social Security and the IRS, they also check, using this free online system, whether the new employee is telling the truth about who they are. The system's already in place, it's used millions of times every year, including by the great folks at (insert name of company in your state), and unlike the Obamacare website, it actually works. But it's optional now and needs to be rolled out nationwide, so that all our businesses and workers are playing on an even playing field.

Second, we need a check-out system for foreign visitors. One thousand new illegal aliens will settle in our country today, and most of them will have come in legally on some kind of visa, but just stayed when their time was up. Better fencing at the border won't fix that. Right now, we're pretty good at checking people into our country, but after that, it's the honor system. Heck, we don't even send a text message thanking them for visiting our country and reminding them to make sure they head home on time.

Finally, we need to undo the damage President Obama has done to law enforcement. For state and local police (insert reference to your state here), the ability to partner with immigration authorities is vital to public safety. And yet this president has dismantled the arrangements between local cops and immigration agents, winked at sanctuary cities, and even punished towns and states that have tried to do the right thing.

Once those three goals are met – not on paper in Washington, but in fact, in the real world – then we'll take another look at the illegal immigrants already here. And there's likely to be a lot fewer of them, simply owing to attrition. In fact, of the illegals here today, fully two and a half million have moved here since President Obama was inaugurated. If he had just done his job, this whole problem would be much smaller and less wrenching. In a (fill in name) administration, we will finally work our way out of this mess.

It's a little long for a debate response when there are eleven people on the stage, but even in abbreviated form it's concrete, coherent, and concise.

http://cis.org/krikorian/debate-prep-immigration Read more about Debate Prep on Immigration

Have you ever wished YOU could ask a question of the Presidential candidates?

Alert date: 
September 15, 2015
Alert body: 

The next presidential debate is this Wednesday, September 16 on CNN. Perhaps your question will be chosen Wednesday evening.
 
We are encouraging every OFIR member or friend to send in a question concerning immigration to CNN. All you have to do is submit your question to CNN at: http://www.cnn.com/specials/politics/submit-questions-september-gop-debate
 
You could ask questions like these:

Don’t you think that E-Verify should be mandated for all employers - discouraging illegal immigration and encouraging illegal workers to depart?  E-Verify is a FREE, internet based program to help employers be certain they are hiring workers that are legally authorized to work in the USA.  Results are quick, accurate and E-Verify gets high approval ratings from participating employers.

Should English be the official language of the US government?

Or, questions could address the financial impact on U.S. taxpayers. FAIR estimates illegal aliens cost U.S. taxpayers $100 billion dollars a year even if you subtract any taxes they might pay. The cost to Oregon taxpayers is estimated at $1 billion a year.
 
Illegal alien cheap labor is devastating our young people. Twenty-three percent of white high school graduates are unemployed. Twenty-four percent of Hispanic high school graduates are unemployed. However the greatest impact is on Black American high school graduates. They have an unemployment rate of over 51 percent.
 
American sovereignty is at stake. Shouldn’t we as Americans make the decision as to whom we allow to immigrate into our great country? How can a nation be defined if it doesn’t have borders?
 
Please take a couple of minutes to send in your question to CNN. If you haven't commented before, you'll need to register with CNN to get your question posted; registration is rather simple and quick.
 
Note: If a comment is not a question to the Republican candidates, it will not appear.

Please - let OFIR know if your question is selected!

Here’s the lineup:
 
Wednesday, September 16, 2015
CNN Republican Primary Debate
6pm ET / 3pm PT - First round debate
8pm ET / 5pm PT - Second round primetime debate

Location: Reagan Library in Simi Valley, CA
Moderator(s): Jake Tapper, Dana Bash and Hugh Hewitt
Candidates First round: Santorum, Jindal, Pataki, Graham
Candidates Second round Primetime: Trump, Bush, Walker, Huckabee, Carson, Cruz, Rubio, Paul, Christie, Kasich, Fiorina

On the 14th Anniversary of 9/11, a More Dangerous World and Lax Immigration Policies Leave the U.S. Vulnerable to Another Attack, Warns FAIR

Today, the nation marks the 14th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks that took the lives of some 3,000 Americans. In the 14 years that have passed, the world has become an even more dangerous place, while in many ways our defenses against another major terrorist attack have been weakened, warns the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR).

Al-Qaeda, which carried out the attacks of 9/11, remains operational in many parts of the world, while other radical Islamic terrorist organizations have emerged. All of these groups have vowed to strike the United States and have demonstrated the ability to inflict significant harm. Despite the clear dangers and explicit threats, our nation's lax immigration enforcement policies provide a soft underbelly for terrorist organizations to exploit.

"Fourteen years ago, al-Qaeda took advantages of many weaknesses to carry out its attack. Some of them have been corrected, but the most important factor - the ability for terrorists to remain in the United States illegally - is as bad, or worse, than it was in 2001," said Dan Stein, president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR).

Among the glaring weaknesses in our immigration enforcement system that pose a threat to our homeland security in 2015:

  • Obama administration policies protect 87 percent of illegal aliens from enforcement. Under these policies, unless a potential terrorist is already on the government's watch list, his or her continued presence in the U.S. is protected by the administration.
  • A legislated biometric entry/exit system at all land, sea and air ports of entry has not been fully implemented. Thus, like the 9/11 terrorists who entered on visas and failed to leave the country, we still have no way of knowing who remains in the country illegally.
  • Our borders remain out of control. Only 40 percent of our southern border is under operational control, making it easy for terrorists and potentially weapons of mass destruction to enter our country without detection.
  • The Obama administration has reversed detention policies implemented under President Clinton intended to prevent people from gaining entry to our country by abusing the political asylum system.
  • Despite the growing presence of terrorist networks in Europe and other Western countries, we maintain the Visa Waiver Program which allows holders of EU passports to enter the U.S. without being screened by consular officials.

"The FBI and other law enforcement agencies, through their excellent work, have managed to thwart numerous attempts to carry out terrorist attacks in recent months. But no domestic intelligence agency can bat 1.000 indefinitely, especially when our weak immigration enforcement policies allow terrorists so many ways to infiltrate our country," warned Stein. "The Obama administration's politically driven effort to undermine immigration enforcement and Congress's tepid oversight are a potentially lethal combination.

"The commemoration of what took place 14 years ago provides a sobering reminder that global turmoil, and our own lax border and immigration policies, continue to pose a clear and present threat to our security," Stein concluded.

ABOUT FAIR           

Founded in 1979, FAIR is the country's largest immigration reform group. With more than 250,000 members nationwide, FAIR fights for immigration policies that serve national interests, not special interests. FAIR believes that immigration reform must enhance national security, improve the economy, protect jobs, preserve our environment, and establish a rule of law that is recognized and enforced. Read more about On the 14th Anniversary of 9/11, a More Dangerous World and Lax Immigration Policies Leave the U.S. Vulnerable to Another Attack, Warns FAIR

Canada's fugitive turns up in Oregon prison, now faces extradition as suspected child rapist

Canadian authorities sent out a fugitive alert last year in the hunt for a man suspected of raping a teenage girl in Alberta – apparently unaware that he was already behind bars in a federal prison in Oregon...

Raed Arook's travels in and out of custody – including three illegal entries into the U.S. – is documented in U.S. court papers...

Canadian authorities now want to get the 39-year-old Arook back into custody on their side of the border, and U.S. officials want to comply under a long-standing extradition treaty between the two North American neighbors.

But Arook is contesting Canada's push to extradite him to Alberta, where the Crown Prosecutors Office wants to put him on trial for the alleged sexual assault of a 15-year-old girl in his Edmonton hotel room.

Agents discovered that Arook had first entered the U.S. illegally on April 7, 2007, tripping a Customs and Border Patrol surveillance camera five miles west of the Sweet Grass, Montana...

The U.S. apparently sent Arook back to Canada that June. But a few months later, on Oct. 17, 2007, he was convicted of drug possession in Houston...

U.S. authorities deported Arook to Israel on April 22, 2008.

More than five years later, according to government court papers, a 15-year-old girl in Edmonton, identified as "C.S.," gave authorities an account of her encounter with Arook on Sept. 10, 2013:

The two met outside the Strathcona Hotel, where Arook invited the girl up to his suite to do some methamphetamine. She agreed and entered the hotel lobby with the Israeli....

A desk clerk later told police that hotel workers discovered a fire escape ladder had been pulled down, a common way for hotel guests to sneak people in.

The girl told investigators that she entered the hotel room, where she and Arook and two other males smoked and snorted meth. She recalled waking about 2 p.m. the following day in Arook's bed, both of them naked, and found that she had difficulty walking. She went to Stollery Children's Hospital, where a sexual assault examination showed she had suffered abrasions to her genitalia.

Edmonton police arrested Arook and on Sept. 24, 2013, charged him with sexual assault and sexual interference. Both charges carry maximum sentences of up to 10 years in prison. But a little more than four months later, on Feb. 12, 2014, he posted a $5,000 recognizance bond and was released, according to Canadian authorities.

Arook was supposed to appear for trial last September, but failed to appear at the Court of Queens Bench of Alberta. Canadian authorities issued an arrest warrant the following day. But he was nowhere to be found.

At 12:35 p.m. that very day, a sheriff's deputy in Toole County, Montana, spotted Arook walking south on Interstate 15, about seven miles south of the U.S.-Canada border station at Sweet Grass...

The deputy took Arook to the sheriff's office, where he was questioned by U.S. Border Patrol agents. Arook gave them a phony name...

Arook later gave them his true name, and he was charged in federal court with illegally re-entering the U.S.

Last December, U.S. authorities sentenced Arook to one year and one day behind bars and sent him to the government prison complex in Sheridan, 50 miles from Portland.

Somehow, police and court officials in Canada never got the word.

Early last March, the Edmonton Police Service put out a bulletin that listed Arook as a fugitive....

"Arook's current whereabouts are not known," according to the police bulletin, which urged anyone with information about him to contact police or the Crime Stoppers tip line.

But U.S. authorities knew where he was. Arook was serving the last five months of his prison term in Sheridan. On Aug. 11, he completed his federal time and deputy U.S. Marshals transferred him from the prison to a downtown Portland jail.

Arook is now locked up in the Inverness Jail in Northeast Portland, where he's being held on a provisional arrest warrant out of Canada.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Stacie F. Beckerman is scheduled to hold an extradition hearing on Oct. 30.

Gorder filed a provisional arrest warrant in August that seeks to extradite Arook to Canada, rather than deport him to Israel.

Lawyers in the Oregon Federal Public Defender's Office, representing Arook in his fight to avoid extradition, pointed out in a recent court motion that his heritage is Palestinian, religion is Muslim and citizenship is Israeli. Therefore they seek U.S. documents that might indicate Arook would suffer political or religious persecution in Canada.

Raed Arook was booked into multiple police agencies in Canada and the U.S. after his 2013 arrest in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The 39-year-old Palestinian Muslim, who holds Israeli citizenship, is now fighting extradition to Canada, where he faces rape charges. His lawyers suggest he might be persecuted for his political or religious views.
  Read more about Canada's fugitive turns up in Oregon prison, now faces extradition as suspected child rapist

Judge upholds Arizona's 'show your papers' immigration law

A federal judge has upheld part of Arizona's contentious immigration law, rejecting claims that the so-called "show your papers" section of the law discriminated against Hispanics.

The ruling by U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton on Friday was on the last of seven challenges to the 2010 law. The section being upheld allows police in Arizona to check the immigration status of anyone they stop...

The judge also upheld a section that let police check to see if a detainee is in the United States illegally...

Karen Tumlin, the legal director of the National Immigration Law Center, one of the parties to the suit, said ...

"We will continue working on behalf of our courageous plaintiffs to show that Arizona can do better than this disgraceful law," she said in a statement.

Bolton's ruling came two days after a federal judge approved a deal between the U.S. Department of Justice and Arizona's Maricopa County to resolve accusations of civil rights abuses and dismissed the department's lawsuit against Sheriff Joe Arpaio and his deputies.


  Read more about Judge upholds Arizona's 'show your papers' immigration law

Lars Larson's open letter to Jeb Bush

The current debate on border security centers around fencing and walls. Other security measures are also being proposed, such as advanced electronic surveillance technology, advocated by Glenn Spencer of American Border Patrol.  In a letter addressed to presidential candidate Jeb Bush, Northwest talk show host Lars Larson makes a great case for strong fences as used successfully in Israel. 

-----------------------------------------

An open letter to Jeb Bush, from Lars Larson

August 27, 2015

In a country that has seen really great leaders, you bring new meaning to “bush league”.

Let me be specific in my criticism beginning with your latest statement on our border invasion.

“You can’t build a wall and solve this problem…it’s  not practical, and it’s not conservative. I don’t think we should spend hundreds of billions of dollars with an impractical solution.” (Breitbart 26 August, 2015)  Jeb….can I call you Jeb? I understand you’re trying to avoid unfortunate connections to the B word.  

Not only can we build a wall, we must build a wall. It’s feasible, fair and fiscally responsible. Let me explain it to you in simple terms since you either lack the information or are allowing your establishment GOP inclinations override common sense for those in our party who cash in big time on all that cheap labor. 

Israel has done it. If a tiny country that is our greatest ally can get it done, please explain to me why a man seeking the most powerful office in the world starts off by declaring what we “can’t” do?

I’ve been pushing this idea since my second visit to Israel in 2005 when I got the chance to see most of their wall from a helicopter. Yet today I hear almost no mention of it by American politicians, even though I’ve mentioned it to dozens of them and have talked about it extensively on my show.

Here’s how quickly Israel put up a barrier against real terrorists:

(Wiki) In 2000, Prime Minister Ehud Barak approved financing of a 74 km (46 mi) fence between the Wadi Ara region and Latrun.[34] In 2001, a grass roots organization called “Fence for Life – The Public Movement for The Security Fence” urged the government to build a fence to separate the Palestinian territories from Israeli population centers. By 2003, 180 km (112 mi) had been completed and in 2004, Israel started the southern part of the barrier. By 2006, 362 km (224.9 mi) of the barrier had been completed, 88 km (54.7 mi) was under construction. By 2012, 440 km (273.4 mi) (62%) of the barrier had been completed, 57 km (35.4 mi) (8%) was under construction.

Unfortunately nearly every Democrat Party member, aided and abetted by “you can’t build a wall” establishment Republicans like you, declare that illegal aliens will just “buy taller ladders”. It’s a simplistic, stupid argument not backed up by facts, which I understand coming from Ds, but why from YOU?

Before I get to the costs and benefits, let’s talk about what it did for a country like Israel facing hundreds killed every year by determined terrorists.

(Wiki) “The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Israel Security Agency report that in 2002, there were 452 fatalities from terrorist attacks. Before the completion of the first continuous segment (July 2003) from the beginning of the Second Intifada, 73 Palestinian suicide bombings were carried out from the West Bank, killing 293 Israelis and injuring over 1,900. After the completion of the first continuous segment through the end of 2006, there were only 12 attacks based in the West Bank, killing 64 people and wounding 445.[5] Terrorist attacks declined in 2007[5] and 2008[42] to 9 in 2010.[43]

 If a fence is that affective against terrorists, how do you think it will work against low skilled workers (“doing the jobs Americans won’t do” to quote the canard used by RINO politicians)?

You have expressed concern that in some cases, a barrier would leave people separated in some communities and impede economic activity. The same was true in Israel but I’ve seen the security gates that allow law abiding Palestinians to cross (in one specific example I remember from my visit ten years ago, a farmer who lived on the West Bank of the Jordan who would cross regularly to work his olive orchards on his land on the other side of the fence). A fence lets both sides decide who comes in legitimately

Now about the cost: Israel has a barrier 422 miles long (680 Kilometers) that cost about $2M per Kilometer. Call it 1.3 billion dollars. America needs a barrier roughly five times a long. Hundreds of miles of the fence have already been built, but even assuming we had to build 2,000 miles (3,000  km) of brand new barrier, that would cost about $6B. Now assume that because it’s built by our oh-so-efficient government, let’s double the cost (call it $12B) and then because it would be constructed with Davis Bacon union labor, add 50%. Round it up to $20B.

For 2.5% of the great Barack Obama’s 2009 “stimulus” we could have it built. Put it out to bid to be started in five different locations by five different companies and get it done in less than the 8 years it took the Israelis.  Hell, hire both Halliburton and Bechtel to keep the left and right happy here.

What does America get for this expenditure of $20B (one half of one percent of the current federal budget or one tenth of one percent of the federal budget over the five years such a project might take)?  

Let me get to that right after I dispense with the problem no American politician (Congressmen King and Gohmert and the great Sen Jeff Sessions excepted) has been able to tackle.

Frankly, it’s easy (remember that Gov. “Can’t”).

Require every American company e-verify its entire workforce. It’s illegal to employ no green card illegals, but for starters, use Iowa Congressman Steve King’s idea: if you’re not a legal worker, your wages are not deductible at tax time. Raids and criminal charges take forever. The IRS decree would act instantly on every company.

...

Read the rest of the article online at: http://larslarson.com/an-open-letter-to-jeb-bush/ Read more about Lars Larson's open letter to Jeb Bush

Wong does not make a birthright for illegal aliens

Birthright citizenship, the 14th Amendment, anchor babies and illegal immigration are dominating the news.  

Donald Trump has opened the discussion even more when he called for the denial of automatic citizenship for anchor babies.  Even Jeb Bush, an open border and amnesty advocate, has denounced the practice.

The article below by Colin McNickle is an insightful look into the issue.  All OFIR members should read the article and learn what’s true and what’s not true about birthright citizenship.

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Wong does not make a birthright for illegal aliens

By Colin McNickle, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (Greensburg, Pa.)

 August 24, 2015
 
The firestorm that has erupted anew over "birthright citizenship" exposes the manifest dangers of constitutional ignorance. Not Donald Trump's but that of his critics who have shown remarkable reading incomprehension regarding the Constitution and the Supreme Court case they so regularly cite in defense of their position.

A diverse chattering class of liberals, "progressives," conservatives and even, remarkably, libertarians pounced on Mr. Trump when he said that the children of illegal aliens born in the United States are not, under the 14th Amendment, automatically citizens of the United States.

Fox News host Bill O'Reilly, for one, would have none of that. "If you are born here, you're an American, period," he said, sparring with Trump, one of the gaggle of Republican presidential contenders. Later, Mr. O'Reilly, as have many others, cited United States v. Wong Kim Ark, decided by the Supreme Court in 1898.

As the Oxford Companion to the Supreme Court notes, at issue in Wong was the citizenship status of those of Chinese descent. An 1882 law already had barred Chinese from becoming naturalized citizens; "exclusionists" sought to bar them from birthright citizenship as well (based on the nationality of their parents and not the place of their birth).

Wong Kim Ark was born to Chinese parents in San Francisco in 1873. But, later, following a trip to China, he was denied readmission to the United States. "The government argued that Wong Kim Ark was not a citizen because his Chinese parents made him subject to the emperor of China."

The logic was tortured. Nonetheless, its essence, properly employed, goes to the heart of the 14th Amendment:

"All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof (emphasis added), are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside."

The high court, citing not only common law but the 14th Amendment, ruled 6-2 that citizenship was guaranteed to all persons born in the United States, regardless of their heritage.

So, case closed, right? The Supreme Court ruled birthright citizenship is the law of the land for all, right? The Donald Trump argument is populist pap and for naught, right?
Well, not exactly.

The Wong case involved the child of legal resident aliens. "The Supreme Court has never ruled directly on the question of birthright citizenship for the children of illegal aliens," wrote Lino A. Graglia, a University of Texas law professor, in a seminal 2010 white paper.

And illegal aliens clearly are subject to the jurisdiction of the country whence they came.

But what about the common law component of the court's Wong decision?

"The court recognized that even a rule based on soil and physical presence could not rationally be applied to grant birthright citizenship to persons whose presence in a country was not only without the government's consent but in violation of the law,"

Professor Graglia wrote.  A number of constitutional scholars -- from Graglia, to Yale law professor Peter Schuck, to Gerald Posner -- say Congress can and should act -- without repealing or amending the 14th Amendment -- to end the absurdity of constitutionally warrantless birthright citizenship for illegal aliens, citizenship that's wholly unsupported in case law.

After all, the Constitution "should not be interpreted to require an absurdity," Graglia concluded. And it need not be. Because it doesn't.

Colin McNickle is Trib Total Media's director of editorial pages. Read more about Wong does not make a birthright for illegal aliens

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