illegal aliens

Driver's card issue now a waiting game

For a litany of volunteers, this was a week of hopes realized and hopes dashed.

On Monday, the Secretary of State’s Election Office began scrutinizing referendum petitions submitted by the group Oregonians for Immigration Reform and the paid private firm Signature Gathering Company of Oregon.

The OFIR group hopes to have collected 58,142 valid signatures to qualify Referendum No. 301 for the November 2014 ballot. It believes residents, not lawmakers, should decide whether the state should issue driver-privilege cards to individuals without DMV-required documentation, such as a birth certificate or passport. Gov. John Kitzhaber signed Senate Bill 833 in May, which authorizes the issuance of driver’s-privilege cards beginning in January.

OFIR had volunteers witness the elections staff as it started the certification process. The elections office accepted the petitions Oct. 4 and has 30 days to determine whether a representative sample validates the referendum for next year’s ballot. It is too early to know if the group has enough valid signatures, but its president, Cynthia Kendoll, believes it does because more than half of the petitions are “e-sheets,” or single-signature pages printed out by the voter, signed and then mailed back to the group.

Volunteers from other groups such as CAUSA Oregon and the Oregon Safe Roads Coalition also observed the election office staff at work. These groups had individuals on hand to ensure that the signature-vetting process was handled correctly because they hope the petition for the referendum fails to qualify for the ballot.

They had previously welcomed the governor’s signature on SB 833.

Many of these individuals don’t see the issue as a de facto immigration policy, but believe it makes the roads safer for all Oregonians.

Ron Louis, a 33-year veteran of law enforcement and retired chief of police in Hillsboro, doesn’t want to wade into the immigration debate. He doesn’t believe the driver-privilege card is an inroad to granting anyone in the country illegally the rights afforded U.S. citizens. He views the cards as a matter of public safety, and he points to their success in other states such as Maryland, New Mexico, Utah and Washington as validation for his point of view.

“It just allows anyone without the typical documentation to drive and get insurance. And it puts them through a testing process that hopefully makes them safer driver,” Louis said. “It ensures that they minimally understand rules and road signs, and I’d much rather have every driver alongside me have this education.”

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Banks man convicted of Aloha revenge killing set for new trial in 2014

An aggravated murder case that returned to Washington County Circuit Court on appeal in 2011 is scheduled to be retried in April.

The Oregon Supreme Court overturned the case against Petronilo Lopez-Minjarez, of Banks, in August 2011 because of a bad jury instruction. The instruction incorrectly stated the law on accomplice liability, the court decided.
 

Read more about the kidnapping, assault and murder.

NOTE: Petronilo Lopez Minjarez - ICE HOLD
  Read more about Banks man convicted of Aloha revenge killing set for new trial in 2014

Two Hillsboro men sentenced to prison for methamphetamine possession

Summary: Two men accused of dealing methamphetamine have been convicted and sentenced in Washington County Circuit Court.
 

Read the full story.
 

NOTE: Gerardo Barriga-Avalos and Manuel Avalos-Pina - ICE HOLDS Read more about Two Hillsboro men sentenced to prison for methamphetamine possession

Rep. Schrader to Hold Town Hall Events in Oregon City, Keizer

Alert date: 
October 9, 2013
Alert body: 

You are invited to attend one of Representative Kurt Schrader's upcoming October town hall events in Oregon City and Keizer. Town hall events are excellent opportunities for you to ask questions about issues pending in Congress or the community.

The massive amnesty bill, S744 ,working its way through Congress is a threat to our nation's sovereignty. Unemployed Americans should be the first consideration of our elected officials and they clearly won't be if this bill is passed.

Please attend one of these meetings and ask Rep. Schrader to stop this bill in the House, when it arrives, and ask him not to send it on to conference.

Should the government be shutdown during these events, Schrader will not be able to attend in person.   However, he will hold these town hall events from Washington, D.C. via Google Hangout live video feed.

Oregon City Town Hall
Wednesday, October 16th
6:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Providence Willamette Falls Education Center
519 15th St., Oregon City 97045

Keizer Town Hall
Thursday, October 17th
6 to 7 p.m.
Keizer Civic Center
930 Chemawa Rd. NE, Keizer 97303

 

Immigration Reform Rally on ‘Closed’ National Mall OK’d by Park Service

The Park Service will reportedly allow a pro-immigration reform rally to occur on the National Mall even though the site is technically closed due to the partial government shutdown.

Organizers for the event, titled “Camino Americano: March for Immigration Reform,” set up a stage and equipment for the Tuesday rally as the public was kept out. A spokesperson for the event told the Washington Examiner that the Park Service has granted them permission to utilize the site.

“The President and his administration have a history of picking and choosing which laws they want to obey and this is no different,” Dane told TheBlaze. “Americans who fought for freedom are denied access to the WW II memorial while those who violate our laws are rewarded.”

Dane also said about 30 members of Congress, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) are expected to attend the rally.

“The event is hosted by several immigration activist groups, together with the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and the AFL-CIO,” according to the Washington Examiner.

You may recall that Rep. Steven Palazzo (R-Miss.) recently claimed he requested that veterans be allowed to enter the WWII memorial in Washington, D.C., but the request was rejected by the White House.

Bob Dane, communications director for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, provided TheBlaze exclusive photos of the group setting up the stage and preparing for the rally.

  Read more about Immigration Reform Rally on ‘Closed’ National Mall OK’d by Park Service

Now we wait...

Alert date: 
October 8, 2013
Alert body: 

Five months have passed since PODL began it's campaign to place SB 833 on the ballot. Volunteers have donated hundreds of hours of their time and the signatures that were gathered in every corner of the state - in neighborhoods, at County Fairs, at Gun Shows and Saturday Markets have now been submitted for review.  Thank you to everyone who helped us reach our goal.

Read more about signature verification.


 

Chief Petitoner and OFIR VP has his say about driver cards

Gifted writer and OFIR VP, Richard LaMountain explains why Oregonians should be concerned about the new law, SB 833, passed by the Oregon Legislature.  Protect Oregon Driver Licenses - filed a citizen's referendum to place the issue on the ballot so voters, not Legislators, can decide if this is right for Oregon.  PODL has gathered and submitted 71,000 signatures, which are currently being scrutinized by the Secretary of State's office for verification.
 

Read LaMountain's opinion piece about driver cards for illegal aliens. Read more about Chief Petitoner and OFIR VP has his say about driver cards

Officials begin verifying driver card referendum petitions

Volunteers from multiple organizations showed up Monday to observe workers in the Secretary of State’s Elections Office begin the process of certifying signed petitions for a 2014 ballot referendum.

State compliance specialist Summer Davis and her staff of two were outnumbered by volunteers with the civil-rights group Causa Oregon, one from the Oregon Safe Road Coalition, and one from Oregonians for Immigration Reform as the employees began checking signed petitions for adherence to state law. Davis said the staff was looking for compliance in areas such as whether or not the petition was signed by the signature gatherer, if the document was dated and whether it included the correct referendum number.

OFIR, which wants voters, not lawmakers, to decide whether residents without documentation should be granted driver privilege cards, needs 58,142 valid signatures to delay the January implementation of a new state law allowing the cards. The group’s Referendum No. 301, if certified for next November’s election, would prevent a law signed by Gov. John Kitzhaber in May from taking effect. If the group does not have enough valid signatures to qualify the referendum for the November ballot, the new law will begin the first of the new year. It is similar to laws already in place or being implemented in Washington, Utah, Maryland, Illinois and New Mexico.

Davis expects the state will begin comparing signatures in a representative sample to those of registered voters next week.

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68% Oppose Driver’s Licenses for Illegal Immigrants

California last week became the latest – and biggest – state to authorize driver’s licenses for illegal immigrants. But most voters still strongly oppose letting illegal immigrants drive legally in their state.

Sixty-eight percent (68%) of Likely U.S. Voters think illegal immigrants should not be eligible for driver’s licenses in their state. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that just 22% favor allowing illegal immigrants to get licenses in their home state. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on October 4-5, 2013 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.

Read more about 68% Oppose Driver’s Licenses for Illegal Immigrants

Hundreds rally in Portland to urge Congress to overhaul immigration policies

About 300 people rallied in downtown Portland Saturday as part of a nationwide day of action to urge Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform.

Immigrants, family members, farmworkers, union workers and others gathered at Director Park on a sun-drenched autumnal afternoon to urge lawmakers to keep families together by passing legislation that includes a pathway to citizenship for more than 11 million undocumented residents.

Read the full article about amnesty and driver cards for illegal aliens.

  Read more about Hundreds rally in Portland to urge Congress to overhaul immigration policies

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