News Digests
Citizens For Immigration Reform regular news digests that are sent
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07-31-2008
Illegal immigrants returning home in large numbers
July 31, 2008 - By DIANNE SOLIS and STELLA CHAVEZ / The Dallas Morning
News
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/
texassouthwest/stories/073008dnmetimmig.19ccbe64.html/a>
By several measures, illegal immigrants appear to be returning home in
large numbers, pushed by enforcement efforts and the sagging economy.
A report issued Wednesday in Washington put the size of the exodus at
more than a million over the last year, though its methodology was
criticized.
Download: Full Center for Immigration Studies report
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/img/
07-08/0730immigrationreport.pdf
Graphic: Signs of a migration
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/img/
07-08/0731met_immigration1.pdf
Also Wednesday, Mexico's central bank said that remittances – payments
sent home by Mexicans working abroad – have slowed after years of steep
increases. That announcement came as the Mexican government considers
ways to receive and help find work for returnees.
In Dallas, officials said nearly 500 families have gone to the Mexican
consulate this year seeking documents needed to enroll their children in
Mexican schools. That's twice as many as in all of last year.
TWO
BORDER AGENTS SENTENCES UPHELD
Dallas
Morning News, July 29, 2008
San
Antonio--A federal appeals court refused Monday to throw out lengthy
prison sentences for two Border Patrol agents convicted of shooting an
unarmed illegal immigrant and lying about it.
The 5th U. S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans upheld
four of the convictions against Ignacio Ramos and Jose Alonso Compean,
including those that resulted in their lengthy sentences. But the
three-judge panel threw out their convictions for tampering with an
official proceeding.
The 45-page court opinion says the trial of the two men, who
have been in prison since January, 2007 was simply a dispute between
them and the government over what happened
"The jury did not believe the Border Patrol agents. It
convicted them" the opinion says, The government's evidence, if
believed, is sufficient to uphold the convictions."
In July, 2007, Sens. John Cornyn, R-Texas and others asked
President Bush to commute the agents' sentences. Mr. Cornyn reiterated
his position Monday sayig in a statement that "this case cries out for a
commutation that is fair and just, and I once again call on President
Bush to act."
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5914689.html
New immigration
strategy— Deport yourself
Agency allows immigrants here illegally to avoid raids, prison by
turning selves in
By HERNÃN ROZEMBERG
San Antonio
Express-News
July 30, 2008,
2:37AM
Rather than risk getting caught, turn yourselves in.
That's the latest government strategy in its ongoing effort to
dramatically reduce the nation's ballooning population of illegal
immigrants.
Scheduled to be unveiled next week, it was announced Sunday by Julie
Myers, director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, in an
interview with a Spanish-language television network.
Myers told the network that "Operation Scheduled Departure" will allow
illegal immigrants without criminal records a chance to literally
"self-deport" by turning themselves in to her agents.
She said the idea derived from a common complaint voiced by immigrant
detainees: If given the opportunity, they'd rather just go home than be
holed up in immigration prisons.
Under the new program, those still walking free will have the chance to
walk into ICE offices, be processed and get a few weeks to arrange their
affairs, pack their belongings and ship out of the country without being
detained.
http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/
local/07/26/0726bilingual.html
Texas ordered to improve bilingual education
TEA has until the end of January to change program for secondary
schools.
By
Jeff Carlton
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Saturday, July 26, 2008
DALLAS
— A federal judge on Friday gave the state of Texas until the end of
January to come up with a plan to improve education programs for
secondary school students with limited proficiency in English,
criticizing the state education agency for "failing to ensure equal
education opportunities in all schools."
U.S.
District Judge William Wayne Justice said the Texas Education Agency is
violating the civil rights of Spanish-speaking students under the
federal Equal Education Opportunity Act. Furthermore, the state's
monitoring of programs for students with limited English-language skills
is "fatally flawed" because of unqualified monitors, undercounting of
students with limited English proficiency and arbitrary standards,
Justice said.
The
1981 Bilingual and Special Education Programs Act, a measure passed by
the Legislature that staved off court action addressing discrimination
in Texas schools, has not improved the schooling of secondary students
with limited English proficiency, Justice ruled.
August
issue of "The Social Security & Medicare Advisor
"
The Senior
Citizens League, Inc.,
Wage Reports For Illegal
Workers A Huge Hidden Cost To Social Security
By Mary Johnson
The federal
government recently made the largest single work site
immigration raid in U.S. history. Immigration officials
arrested 389 workers — one third of the total number of
employees — at the Agriprocessors Inc. plant in Postville, Iowa.
According to The
Associated Press, the application and affidavit for the search
warrant alleged that based on 2007 fourth quarter payroll
reports, about 78% of Agriprocessors’ 968 workers, were using
false or fraudulent Social Security numbers. In addition, the
warrant alleged that Agriprocessors was notified by the Social
Security Administration (SSA) in five separate letters, of an
unbelievable 500 Social Security number “discrepancies” (numbers
which could be fraudulent) for each tax year from 2000 to 2005.
Although the raid
grabbed the headlines, Agriprocessors is not the only employer
sending in hundreds of questionable Social Security numbers
every year. From 2000 to 2005 the SSA received more than 9
million such reports every year. Those discrepancies represent
a huge future liability to Social Security and your benefits.
How so?
Each year the SSA
processes about 245 million W2s from employers. When Social
Security receives a name or Social Security number (SSN) on a
W-2 that does not match SSA’s records, the wage report goes into
the “Earnings Suspense File” (ESF). SSA Inspector General
Patrick P. O’Carroll has stated in testimony before Congress
that “we believe the chief cause of wage items being posted to
the [Earnings Suspense File] instead of an individual’s earnings
record is unauthorized work by non-citizens.”
In recent years
the file has been growing at an unprecedented pace. In 2005,
the most recent year for which data is available, the file grew
by the largest amount this decade. The Social Security
Administration says that more than 10 million wage reports were
added for 2005 alone. Those
reports represented some $75 billion in wages.
From 2000-2005
the total number of mismatched wage reports jumped from 217
million to 274 million by 2005— 82% higher than during the
1990’s and more than double the rate of the 1980’s. Wages in
the ESF more than doubled from $301.8 billion to $660 billion.
Mismatched
earnings reports remain in the ESF until the SSA obtains
evidence to link the unidentified earnings to a valid SSN — a
process termed “earnings reinstatement.” Reinstatements can
occur any time, even years later.
If Congress enacts
immigration reform that provides work authorization for current
illegal immigrants, and allows a pending Social Security
Totalization Agreement with Mexico to go into effect, a very
substantial amount of earnings in the ESF file would potentially
be reinstated in the future. Once illegal workers obtain a
valid SSN, they can provide SSA with evidence of earnings
reports from unauthorized employment prior to receiving their
SSN. Their earnings, even if the wages were for illegal work,
will be reinstated under their valid SSN. Because earnings are
used to determine both the number of quarters of coverage worked
for entitlement and determination of the initial benefit, this
poses huge liability to the Social Security Trust Fund worsening
its solvency. This would trigger benefit cuts and higher taxes
for seniors who earned their benefits the legal way.
To combat this
threat, TSCL supports the “No Social Security For Illegal
Immigrants Act,” introduced by Representative Dana Rohrabacher
(CA). The legislation would ban Social Security credit for
illegal work and prevent wages from unauthorized earnings being
used to determine entitlement to benefits.
Sources: “Immigration Raid
Spurs Calls For Action Vs. Owners,” David Pitt, The Associated
Press, June 1, 2008. Statement of the Honorable Patrick P.
O’Carroll, Inspector General, Social Security Administration
Before the Subcommittee on Oversight of the House Committee on
Ways and Means, February 16, 2006. “Better Coordination Among
Federal Agencies Could Reduce Unidentified Earn
07-30-2008
Roy
Beck of NumbersUSA reports:
At
9:39 p.m. Tuesday, I was able to post the following on the
Home page of the NumbersUSA website
the following:
Mostly good news to report this evening from
multiple sources in the U.S. House -- negotiators have agreed to a
5-year re-authorization of the E-Verify program to keep illegal aliens
out of U.S. jobs and without the strings attached that had threatened to
strangle it in future years.
There are several indicators that many Members of Congress in both
Parties really listened to you the citizens through your hundreds of
thousands of faxes and phone calls this past week.
You can read more details and your fellow citizens' comments
in my blog.
I thank all of you for all the faxing and phoning that made this first
victory possible. Believe me, Members of the House of Representative
felt tremendous pressure because of your work.
If the agreement holds together through today, we can hope to have House
passage of E-Verify and then move on to get it passed in the Senate.
My blog
discusses the challenge we face in the Senate.
We are asking for no more E-Verify phone calls into the House at this
time, but please keep the pressure on the Senate. Please take any
actions you find on your
Action Buffet corkboard
t! o contin ue the pressure for good immigration policy out of this
Congress.
07-25-2008
ALERT
CFIR MEMBERS:
Background:
NumbersUSA is seeking a permanent reauthorization of E-Verify, which is
now set to expire in November, but
could agree to a minimum renewal period of ten years for now. We
also are pushing for a phased-in mandate for all employers to use
E-Verify, as embodied in the SAVE Act.
The
short-term extension proposed by business and open-borders groups of only
three years is little more than a ploy to buy time to further
weaken E-Verify and continue efforts behind the scenes to enact an
amnesty during the next Congress. The
best solution for Congress, and for the nation, is to pass a “clean”
reauthorization before members break for their August recess, and
then resume efforts to enact the SAVE Act in September.
Please
call your U.S. Representative today (1-866-340-9281)
to ask for a “clean” reauthorization of E-Verify, preferably with no
sunset but for a minimum of ten years.
The
Short version is: TELL
CONGRESS TO "REAUTHORIZE
E-VERIFY FOR 10 YEARS
WITH
NO STRINGS ATTACHED."
07-23-2008
Sen. Hutchison
Introduces $500
Million Border
Law Enforcement
Legislation
Would Establish DOJ Grant Program with Focus on Border Communities
WASHINGTON
– U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX), today filed legislation that
would create a $500 million grant funding program at the U.S. Department
of Justice with a direct focus on helping border communities fight
narcoterrorism.
“Our border law
enforcement personnel are under assault and the Congress must provide
the funding they need,” said Sen. Hutchison. “Federal funding
for combating narcotics trafficking must focus on the communities along
the border that are on the frontlines.”
The Border Law
Enforcement Relief Act of 2008 will create and authorize $100 million
for each of the 2009-2013 fiscal years in federal grant funding, with
two-thirds designated for border communities within 100 miles of the
northern and southern borders. One-third of the grant funding will be
designated for law enforcement agencies across the country that are
affected by border-related criminal activity.
Funding from these grants could be used to obtain equipment, upgrade
technology, hire additional personnel, and cover overtime and
transportation costs associated with criminal activity along the
border.
In May
Sen. Hutchison secured $100 million in federal funding for domestic law
enforcement in the Senate version of the Supplemental Appropriations
bill, but the funding was removed during a conference with the House.
Also
today, Sen. Hutchison sent a letter to the Senate Appropriations
Committee Chairman and Ranking Member (and the subcommittee of
jurisdiction’s Chairman and Ranking Member) asking that $100 million be
added to the second Emergency Supplemental Appropriations bill ($85
million for domestic law enforcement and $15 million to fund Project Gun
Runner).
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/nationworld/stories/072308dnnataids.3f10d7f.html
Hispanics make up
22% of new HIV, AIDS cases
The
Washington Post - 07:21 AM CDT on
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
SAN YSIDRO,
Calif.
-- Though Hispanics comprise about 14 percent of the
U.S. population,
they represented 22 percent of new HIV and AIDS diagnoses tallied by
federal officials in 2006.
Officials do not
have a precise tally of HIV infections nationwide, because many states
have not reported figures to the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention. The 22 percent, a figure that has not been previously
released, includes 33 states and
Puerto
Rico, but not California, where more than 37 percent of the population
is Hispanic.
(Thought: With 15
states left to be counted, the Hispanic population (and the lifetime
health expenses thereof) has to be much greater.)
So far, the toll
of AIDS in the nation's largest and fastest growing minority population
has mostly been overshadowed by the epidemic among blacks and gay white
men. Yet in major
U.S. cities, as
many as one in four gay Hispanic men has HIV, a rate on par with
sub-Saharan Africa.
Language
difficulties, cultural barriers and, in many cases, issues of legal
status make the Hispanic community unique. For those who arrived
illegally, fear of arrest and deportation presents a daunting obstacle
to seeking diagnosis and treatment.
"Migrants tend to
be lonely, separated from their family or partners," said CDC
epidemiologist Kenneth Dominguez. "They do not have health insurance.
They may turn to drugs or alcohol. All of these put a migrant at higher
risk."
www.newsmax.com
Obama: Healthcare for Illegals
By: Dick
Morris & Eileen McGann
-
Monday, July 21, 2008 9:06 PM
Democrats'
single most important domestic proposal — universal health
insurance — may blow up in Barack Obama's face when voters are
exposed to the deadly details.
Obama has said, proudly and often, "I am going to give health
insurance to 47 million Americans who are now without coverage."
But are they "Americans?"
That 47 million statistic includes
illegal immigrants,
who virtually all lack insurance. In fact, about one in four
of those lacking insurance is here illegally. And they are,
by far, the group most in need of health insurance.
About 15
million of the remaining uninsured are eligible for Medicaid but
haven't signed up,
mainly because they haven't gotten sick. When they do, they
enroll in Medicaid and we pick up the full tab for their health
care relatively cheaply. (About 80 percent of each Medicaid
dollar goes to nursing-home care for the elderly, only about 20
percent for the medical needs of the poor.)
The rest
of the uninsured pool? Virtually all the children are eligible
for the State Children's Health Insurance Program. Some aren't
enrolled because the parents haven't bothered, but most are
eligible. That leaves about 20
million uninsured adults who are US citizens or legal
immigrants. There are far better ways to handle their needs than
to turn our entire health-care system upside down.
AZ court: Immigrants subject to smuggling law
08:43 AM MST on Friday, July 18, 2008
By AMANDA LEE MYERS / Associated Press Writer
PHOENIX (AP) --
Arizona's appeals court on Thursday upheld the conviction of an
illegal immigrant prosecuted as a conspirator under the
state's human-smuggling law.
The court found
that the law's wording is clear and unambiguous - illegal immigrants can
be convicted for conspiracy to smuggle themselves into the country. The
defendant, Juan Barragan-Sierra of Mexico, had argued that the Arizona
Legislature didn't intend to punish anyone but smugglers when it passed
the law.
The 2005 law made
it a state crime to smuggle humans, already a federal crime. But under a
disputed interpretation by Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas, more
than 650 immigrants themselves have been charged and convicted of
violating the law as conspirators. Convictions can bring up to two years
in prison.
Barragan-Sierra,
23, had admitted paying a smuggler $2,000 to be taken into the U.S. in
June 2006.
"A person may
commit conspiracy to commit an offense - in this case, human smuggling -
even if he cannot be convicted of the offense itself," according to the
ruling. "When appellant agreed to be transported illegally into the
United States from San Luis, Mexico for a $2,000 fee, followed a person
across the border through the desert on foot, and hid in a van and a
truck as the group traveled north through Maricopa County, where he was
stopped and arrested, he met all of the elements of conspiracy to commit
human smuggling."
The
appellate court also disagreed with Barragan-Sierra's
contention that federal immigration law pre-empts the state law. The
court said states' police powers encompass human smuggling, and
Arizona's law isn't trying to regulate immigration - a federal concern.
Thomas called the
court's ruling intellectually courageous. "It's another historic
milestone in the fight against illegal immigration, and it shows that
Maricopa County continues to lead the way in that effort," he said.
He added that law-enforcement agencies in the state besides the Maricopa
County Sheriff's Office also should arrest illegal immigrants under the
law. "They've got no more excuses now," he said.
07-17-20088
Border
arrests cram courts, fill cells in neighbor states
12:28 AM CDT on
Thursday, July 17, 2008
By DAVE MICHAELS and DIANNE
SOLÍS / The Dallas Morning News
dmichaels@dallasnews.com
dsolis@dallasnews.com
A
zero-tolerance approach to illegal border crossings has produced a
record number of immigration prosecutions in Texas and other border
states, swamping federal courthouses with misdemeanor cases and landing
many immigrants in local jails, according to interviews and new federal
data.
Analysts attribute the surge in prosecutions to Operation Streamline, a
Bush administration program that began in Del Rio and now includes
virtually every mile of the border except near Big Bend National Park.
The program expanded last month to three counties in the Rio Grande
Valley.
Home state groups jump-start active citizenship in immigrants
10:15 PM CDT on Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Roberto Chavarría cut his teeth as a community organizer in a group the
likes of which many Americans probably are unaware: a home state
association.
Such groups are made up of immigrants from a certain country, state or
city who work together to help out back home with development projects
such as parks and school additions.
Mexicans have formed more than 600 clubs around the country, and they
played a role in the $25 billion that was sent to Mexico last year by
migrants abroad.
But
there are unexpected benefits as groups become more active locally and
their members move toward what's being called active citizenship.
Mr.
Chavarría's group, made up of people from the central Mexican state of
Michoacán, worked on getting high school diplomas for its members via
Internet classes in Mexico. His next move is to shift those immigrants
into high school equivalency tests in Texas.
"I
feel more American than many Americans," says Mr. Chavarría, a
48-year-old legal permanent resident. "I don't think being an American
is a piece of paper. It is the way you do things and think. I like
freedom and free enterprise and what this country stands for."
Obama: Hispanics are critical to election
SAN DIEGO |
Sen. Barack Obama
received a rock-star welcome Sunday from the nation's largest Hispanic
rights group, telling them they are the critical swing group in
November's presidential election and promising a renewed effort to pass
an immigration bill during his first year in office.
"This election is nothing less than a test of our allegiance to the
American dream," the Democrats' presumptive presidential nominee told
the National Council of La Raza (NCLR) convention, in a speech in which
he also proposed a tax credit to help small businesses pay for health
insurance for their employees.
Getty Images Thalia Mendoza poses with cardboard images of Sens. Barack
Obama and John McCain at the convention of the National Council of La
Raza, a large Hispanic rights group that is hosting speeches by both
presidential candidates this week in San Diego.
Janet Murguia, president and chief executive
of NCLR, heaped praise on Mr. Obama for both his leadership on
immigration and his personal outreach to NCLR. It was a boon for the
senator from Illinois, who is sparring with presidential opponent
Sen. John McCain,
Arizona Republican, over who accomplished more on last year's
immigration bill.
She said Mr. Obama "stood with us" in the immigration fight, and
said Mr. Obama also has made strong efforts to court Hispanic leaders,
telling the convention that Mr. Obama personally sought out NCLR in 2005
and visited Ms. Murguia at NCLR's office soon after he was sworn in as
senator.
"What stuck with me was that a newly elected U.S. senator came to
us, to our home. That had never, ever happened before, or since for that
matter," she said.
Mr. McCain's campaign has tried to drive a wedge between Mr. Obama
and Hispanic voters, arguing that the Democrat worked against the 2007
bill by voting to halve the number of future immigrant workers that
would be allowed.
Rosario Marin, a U.S. treasurer during President Bush's first term,
said the bill was killed by "people like Senator Obama casting votes
that eventually unraveled the immigration package that [Mr. McCain] had
so carefully put together."
That bill was defeated when a majority of senators, including 15
Democrats, voted to filibuster it. Both Mr. McCain and Mr. Obama voted
against the filibuster.
Mexican drug cartel may have had help from former Collin County deputy
constable, police say
12:00 AM
CDT on Tuesday, July 15, 2008 - By WENDY HUNDLEY / The Dallas Morning
News
whundley@dallasnews.com
One of Mexico's most powerful drug cartels may have had some inside help
in North Texas for several years from a Collin County deputy constable,
according to police documents.
Robert Benavidez, whose career as a North Texas peace officer dates back
almost a dozen years, was arrested July 8 on six counts of abuse of
official capacity. He is accused of helping his cousin, Sergio
Maldonado, who was believed to have been the North Texas "cell leader"
for the Zetas, the ruthless enforcement arm of Mexico's Gulf Cartel drug
smuggling operation.
Mr. Maldonado was among 30 people arrested last year during a massive
federal drug sweep known as Operation Puma. Mr. Maldonado pleaded guilty
earlier this year to drug trafficking and money laundering-related
charges.
Beginning in 2004, while working as a deputy constable, Mr. Benavidez
would periodically check law enforcement databases to determine whether
Mr. Maldonado or his wife had any outstanding arrest warrants.
07-14-2008
It seems
E Verify hangs in the balance and it is the Republicans on the Ways and
Means Committee who are hanging it up, those Republicans who are siding
with the US Chamber of Commerce and Big business. We need to place call
to those Ways and Means Committee Members and tell them E Verify is good
for American Workers. We need to ramp up the heat on them. If we lose E
Verify, we lose all the local and state legislation that is tied to it.
Please use your email lists to generate phone calls to:
Sam
Johnson Texas 202 225-4201
John
Boehner Ohio 202 225-6205
Roy
Blunt Missouri 202 225-6536
Jim
McCrery Louisiana 202 225-2777
07-10-2008
Good news from
NumbersUSA
We have just
received reassurance from our allies on the Hill that the enemies of
E-Verify got the message -- at least for the moment.
Negotiations are
supposed to be back on track for re-authorizing E-Verify without any
seeds of self-destruction.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/070508dnmetimmigrants.243928.html
More Mexicans leaving U.S. under
duress
09:15
AM CDT on Saturday, July 5, 2008
By
OCTAVIO RIVERA LÓPEZ / Al Día
Two
hours were enough for José Luis Sánchez and his family to pack their
most valuable belongings in two vans – items accumulated in 10 years of
living in the Dallas area.
With
his wife, children and their suitcases in place, Mr. Sánchez closed the
door of his Mesquite apartment for the last time, sat at the wheel of
one of the vehicles – his brother drove the other – and hit the road
back to his homeland.
So
ended his decade-long adventure as an illegal Mexican immigrant in the
United States.
Texas sheriffs also want aid to fight border drug violence
-
Web
Posted: 07/04/2008 01:03 AM CDT
By
Stewart M. Powell
WASHINGTON — Besieged Texas sheriffs have vowed to press the White House
and Congress to deliver emergency assistance to law enforcement officers
battling
drug cartels
along the Mexican border to match the $400 million on its way to
Mexico.
The
sheriffs said they were frustrated that President Bush and Congress
agreed to provide assistance to Mexico as part of the Merida Initiative,
without offering additional federal help to their departments.
The
officers said they'd seek direct federal assistance, as well as changes
in Department of Homeland Security restrictions to permit local law
enforcement departments to use homeland security funds to hire more
officers. Regulations now require local police and sheriff's departments
to devote Homeland Security money to equipment, technology and officers'
overtime.
Implementation of the Merida Initiative is really disappointing and
disheartening, because Washington seems totally oblivious to what we're
facing on the Mexican border, said Webb County Sheriff Rick Flores,
chairman of the 19-county Texas Border Sheriff's Coalition. If they
allocate resources and money to Mexico, they should also consider
protecting our side of the border first.
http://www.familysecuritymatters.org:80/publications/id.554/pub_detail.asp
Exclusive: Mexican Truck
Pilot Program – Fast Pass to Disease and Drugs
July 8, 2008
Mark Taylor
The
most recent outbreak of salmonella poisoning of produce caused much
alarm across the country and cost American tomato growers millions in
lost revenue. As of this writing, over 900 salmonella cases have been
diagnosed in 40 states.
While
American farmers struggled as the CDC did their best to pin the tainted
tomatoes on them, their crops rotted on docks and in warehouses as
consumers refused to buy potentially contaminated goods. For those of us
in Arkansas, it was a relief when our famous Bradley County pink
tomatoes were cleared; harvesting had not begun when the outbreak
occurred.
It
came as no surprise when the CDC finally had to admit, rather
reluctantly it seemed, that the contaminated goods were not only
tomatoes but possibly jalapeños and bulb onions as well - all ported
from Mexico.
When
Department of Transportation Secretary Mary Peters began pushing the
program to allow Mexican trucks access to American highways and offered
the "fast pass" through Customs, it became an open door for drug and
human smuggling. Ignoring opposition from the Teamsters Union, the
Owner/Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) and individual
truckers nationwide, President Bush and Ms. Peters continued to pander
to the Mexican government while pushing their spin on how "safe" it is
to allow trucks from a country rife with drug lord crime and corruption
to have free access into the United States.
What
failed to inspire Ms. Peters, beyond this short-sighted decision, were
the legions of weary American travelers from Mexico - all of whom were
warned prior to entering that country not to eat the food or drink the
water due to unsanitary handling practices - but managed to get very
sick anyway. Somehow this simple fact seemed overlooked as Peters
cleared the way to allow produce, swarming with dangerous and even
deadly bacteria, into America only to harm American farmers and
consumers in the process. It matters not what the processing procedures
of fresh fruits and vegetables imported from Mexico are, as long as the
trucks that carry them into America get a "fast pass". Meanwhile,
Americans of all stripes get the shaft.
On
June 13, 2008, SignOnSanDiego.com reported finding 805 packages of
marijuana weighing more than 5,500 pounds and with a street value of
over $2.2 million dollars, hidden among jalapeños, cucumbers and husk
tomatoes. The driver of the truck was a Mexican national with cargo
originating in Mexico.
On
June 27, 2008, the Missouri State Highway patrol busted truck driver
Marcos J. Tirjerina of McAllen, Texas, in New Madrid, Missouri.
Tirjerina's cargo? Assorted produce, including 1538 pounds of marijuana.
Then
there is Manuel Zuniga of Weslaco, Texas. Zuniga's tractor trailer was
searched after being stopped for speeding through Indianapolis' east
side, on June 16, 2008. Among his cargo of assorted produce were 500
pounds of marijuana.
Over
the Fourth of July weekend - again as consumers were busily celebrating
our nation's birthday - CNN reported that the former Secretary of the
Department of Health and Human Services, Tommy Thompson, announced
routine inspections of produce trucks attempting to enter the United
States from Mexico. The inspections include taking samples to test for
E.coli and salmonella. This is causing outrage from those who wish to
protect their contraband cargo not listed on the trucker's manifest -
the drugs being shipped across the Mexican border in those shipments of
peppers, tomatoes and onions. I would also suggest an English lesson to
Mexican produce haulers attempting to enter the United States -
"marijuana" does not translate into "produce" in English.
The
possibility of bio-terror cannot be ruled out as America continues to
fight the War on Terror. It takes only one spraying of contaminated
water at any point in time during growth and transport, and even on a
produce stand display, to create economic distress to American farmers
and spread illness and disease among unsuspecting consumers.
It is
well past time for the United States government to put the safety and
security of the American people above the desires of a corrupt Mexican
government. Trucks must be inspected at the border. Not just randomly,
but each and every truck attempting access to the United States. The
continued complacency and appeasement to the Mexican government as they
peddle contaminated food products and drugs into the United States,
sickening our citizens and strengthening the illegal drug trade within
our borders, is inexcusable.
Americans must insist upon American-grown produce, strict compliance
within our food processing plants with regard to sanitation and most
importantly, a government of the American people, by the American people
and in the best interests in the health and security of the American
people.
FamilySecurityMatters.org
Contributing Editor
Mark R. Taylor served in Iraq from January 2004 to May 2005 as a
civilian convoy commander, and his website is
American Truckers at War.
07-03-2008
Celebrate the 4th of July
From WallBuilders
-
Take
time to honor and thank God on the Fourth -- make it a day
celebrated "with solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty."
-
Read the
Declaration of Independence. Shortly after the Founders originally
approved the Declaration, they took it outside and read it aloud to
the assembled crowd; and George Washington also had it read aloud in
each regiment of the Continental Army. Even then it was important to
know the reasons for our founding, and it remains no less important
today.
-
Read
John Quincy Adams' fabulous
1837 Fourth of July oration.
(http://www.wallbuilders.com/LIBissuesArticles.asp?id=9717
)
-
Honor
the memory of those (past and present) who sacrificed so much for
our country. In fact, take one name that you do not know from among
the 56 signers of the Declaration (you can find the
list of signers
here
http://www.ushistory.org/Declaration/signers/index.htm)
and look online for a brief biography of that one signer and thus
familiarize yourself with yet another early patriot.
* * * * *
There will be no
CFIR meeting in July
* * * * *
Talk Show Host Mike Gallagher
Send a sympathy card to Mike Gallagher, whose wife died last week,
Send it to KSKY 6400 N. Beltline, Irving TX 75063 - Mark it to Mike's
attention.
* * * * *
July Event
9th Annual Freedom21 National Conference July 24-26, 2008
Crowne Plaza - Addison, Texas
Jerome Corsi, author of the Late Great U.S.A. will be the speaker at the
Friday banquet. You do not
have to attend the whole seminar to attend the banquet.
Registration and information at
http://www.freedom21.org
or
call 731.986.0099 - email is freedom21@freedom
* * * * *
SHAME ON MAYOR RONECKER!!!!
http://www.tampabay.com/news/business/article646366.ece
Subject: Nielsen Company replaces Americans with H-1Bs from Tata
JOB DESTRUCTION NEWSLETTER No. 1882 --
6/28/2008 >>>>>
The Nielsen Company in
Oldsmar, Florida is replacing some of its workers with H-1Bs that
contract with the bodyshop Tata (TCS). Nielsen employees who lose their
jobs are required to train their Indian replacements in order to retain
their severance and pension payments.
All of this got the attention of city council members, but not in
the way we would hope.
Mayor Ronecker makes no distinction between the citizens who are
losing their jobs and the foreigners who are replacing them -- he only cares that more workers are coming to Oldsmar to
increase the tax base.
His [Ronecker] hope is that as Nielsen consolidates its global
workload, it will bring more jobs to Oldsmar -- whether they are filled
by contractors or not. "At the end of the day, in a couple of short
years, we're going to have a lot more workers than we could ever have
envisioned in Oldsmar," he said.
Ronecker showed his true colors here, and it's not red, white, and
blue!
"It's a global company. It's not all about
America anymore, and we're right in the middle of it."
Food safety inspectors struggle with swelling volume of imports
01:29 PM CDT on Sunday, June 29, 2008
By LAURENCE ILIFF and ALFREDO CORCHADO / The
Dallas Morning News
liliff@dallasnews.com;
acorchado@dallasnews.com
LAREDO – Day after day, Mexican trucks line up as far as the eye can see
for entry to the U.S. at the World Trade Bridge, carrying everything
from raw tomatoes, broccoli and fresh basil to frozen seafood. They also
bring in salmonella, listeria, restricted pesticides and other food
poisons.
Customs and Border Protection officers take less than a minute per
truck to determine which products enter the
U.S. and find their way into grocery stores and restaurants across North
Texas.
Most trucks are waved through. The avalanche of imported goods –
especially food from
Mexico – is too much for the limited number of inspectors at the
nation's 300 ports of entry to effectively screen, critics say. And the
sheer volume makes it impossible for them to carry out their mission:
protecting the U.S. food supply and American consumers.
Part 2
Strict safety guidelines enforced as produce travels from Mexico
07:18 AM CDT on
Monday, June 30, 2008
By ALFREDO
CORCHADO / The Dallas Morning News
acorchado@dallasnews.com
SAN JOSÉ ITURBIDE, Mexico – Glenn Fry helps run Taylor Farms de Mexico's
new $14 million plant here. He picked the land where it sits and
designed just about every facet of it, down to the statue of the Virgin
of Guadalupe at the entrance and the jacaranda and palm trees.
And he reminds his workers often that their future lies in ensuring
safety for the products headed to places like his hometown of Dallas.
"In the United States you can stumble once, two, three times and still
survive," Mr. Fry says he tells his workers. "Not in Mexico. Because of
a perception problem, all you need is one problem to destroy your entire
operation."
CQ Today
House Appropriators Restrict Immigration Enforcement Funding
The House Appropriations Committee on Tuesday approved a bill that
provides the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) $39.9 billion in
discretionary spending for fiscal year 2009. This represents $2.3
billion more than President Bush's request and about a six percent
increase over the $37.67 billion enacted for fiscal year 2008.
Specifically, the House bill provides $9.7 billion for Customs and
Border Protection, about $272 million more than enacted in fiscal year
2008 and $207 million more than the President's request. It also
provides Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) $4.8 billion, roughly
$72.8 million more than in fiscal year 2008 and $59.6 million more than
the President's request. (House Homeland Security Appropriations Bill,
p.16.)
Despite the additional spending, the House DHS Appropriations bill
freezes $1.4 billion in spending on border security until the agency
submits planning documentation to Congress, including an "analysis of
[Homeland Security's] proposed infrastructure and technology solution
for individual border segments."
(CQ
Today, Homeland Security Spending Calls for Planning for Border
Protection,
June 24, 2008)
Representative Harold Rogers (R-KY) objected in particular to the
planning language in the bill that restricts $400 million of the $775
million appropriated for border fencing until Homeland Security submits
- and both the House and Senate Appropriations Committees approve - an
expenditure plan for security barriers along
U.S. borders. (House Homeland Security Appropriations Bill, H.R. __, p.
8) The expenditure plan must include an analysis of a long list of
items, including an analysis of every 15-mile segment of fencing or
infrastructure and possible alternative means of achieving operational
control. (House Homeland Security Appropriations Bill, P.12-13.)
The bill provides $775 million for border security fencing. Last
year, Congress appropriated $1.2 billion. (See Committee Summary
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