Immigration News

Jeb Tries To Push Back On The Nativists

8:36 am EST January 10th, 2011 | Politics, Republicans | 78 Comments

Jeb Bush, who is the Republican candidate most likely to benefit by stopping his party from being so anti-Latino (he’s fluent in Spanish and his wife is Latino), has an editorial in the Miami Herald advocating for more outreach to latinos. This is getting a big push from the Rove-connected American Action Network.

The problem for Bush and Rove is that nativism is a key part of the conservative coalition, and after Obama won back the Latino vote from the GOP’s gains in 2004 many conservatives/Republicans would rather pander to the hate and vitriol they know than modernizing themselves.

Topic: Immigration, Jeb Bush, Karl Rove, Latino

Lou Dobbs Used Undocumented Workers At His Mansion

8:15 am EST October 7th, 2010 | Conservative | 5 Comments

Lou Dobbs

Another conservative hypocrite of epic proportions.

But with his relentless diatribes against ‘illegals’ and their employers, Dobbs is casting stones from a house—make that an estate—of glass. Based on a yearlong investigation, including interviews with five immigrants who worked without papers on his properties, The Nation and the Investigative Fund at The Nation Institute have found that Dobbs has relied for years on undocumented labor for the upkeep of his multimillion-dollar estates and the horses he keeps for his 22-year-old daughter, Hillary, a champion show jumper.

As almost always with the right – when they accuse you of something, they’re probably doing it.

Topic: Immigration, Lou Dobbs

Does “Machete” Advocate Race War?

10:19 am EST September 10th, 2010 | Movies | 7 Comments

The Southern Poverty Law Center dispels this notion:

A film in which a man swings down the side of a building using another man’s intestines as a rope, as Danny Trejo’s title character does, is not taking itself very seriously.

The movie, which is also fun, also features Jessica Alba using a laptop while nude in the shower and constantly arriving on the scene as a law enforcement officer wearing high heels. If this is our “reconquista” future it can’t be that bad.

Jessica Alba, Danny Trejo, Michelle Rodriguez

Topic: Immigration, Jessica Alba

Michael Steele Throws AZ Immigration Law Under The Bus

10:58 am EST August 24th, 2010 | Republicans | 5 Comments

It’s all strategic.

In an interview Monday with Univision, the nation’s largest Spanish-language network, Republican National Committee Chair Michael Steele distanced the Republican Party from SB-1070, Arizona’s controversial immigration law:

CMF: How do you say that Hispanics are relevant (important) for your party, when you just approved a law in Arizona against immigrants?

STEELE: Well, let’s be clear. The actions of one state’s governor is not a reflection of an entire country, nor is it a reflection of an entire political party. The governor and the people of Arizona made a decision that they thought was in their best interest, and that’s the beauty of a republic, that’s who we are.

Topic: Arizona, Immigration, Michael Steele

VIDEO: Harry Reid Recants His Previous Position On 14th Amendment Repeal

4:04 pm EST August 19th, 2010 | Politics | 1 Comment

I’ve seen a lot of people and conservative media outlets referencing Reid’s original statement on the issue after the GOP released the video of it, but considering that he recanted the position 4 years ago (April 5, 2006) and CSPAN has all their archives online, I haven’t seen people show that video. So here it is:

C-SPAN’s clipping tool is somewhat imprecise, so Reid’s comments start at 6:01:53 precisely.

Topic: Harry Reid, Immigration

Florida Tea Party Candidate Marg Barker: Build Camps For Illegal Immigrants

10:02 pm EST August 12th, 2010 | Conservative | 29 Comments

Next they’ll propose just getting rid of them… somehow. Marg Barker is running for the Florida House of Reps.

(via LauraKMM)

Topic: Immigration, Tea Party

Michelle Malkin: By Conservative Definition, An “Anchor Baby”

4:11 pm EST August 4th, 2010 | Conservative | 20 Comments

From Wikipedia:

Malkin was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania as the first of two children to Philippine citizens Apolo DeCastro Maglalang, a physician in training, and Rafaela (née Perez), a homemaker and schoolteacher. Her parents had arrived in the United States earlier that year on an employer-sponsored visa.

Like Dr. Frankenstein, sometimes when you’re complicit in creating a monster, he will turn on you.

ALSO: Republicans brag that they passed the 14th Amendment. Time to scrub the website? (via)

Topic: 14th Amendment, Immigration

Arizona Judge Susan Bolton Gets Death Threats After Immigration Ruling

8:48 am EST July 30th, 2010 | Politics | 19 Comments

The Tea Party (or the ideological fellow travelers) is at it again.

U.S. District Court Judge Susan Bolton is flooded with mail and calls after putting some of Arizona’s controversial immigration law on hold. The U.S. Marshall for Arizona, David Gonzales says ‘About 99.9 percent of the inappropriate comments are people venting. They are exercising their First Amendment rights and a lot of it is perverted. But it’s that 0.1 percent that goes over the line that we are taking extra seriously.’

Topic: Immigration

Utah’s Anti-Immigrant Hit List Compiled By “Concerned Citizens of the United States”

12:59 am EST July 15th, 2010 | News | 12 Comments

In Utah, someone has composed a list of 1,300 “illegal immigrants” that contains names, addresses, and most disturbingly the due dates of pregnant women. It was mailed to the media and an investigation is underway to see if it was compiled by state employees with access to this information.

This behavior is about as un-American as it gets.

Topic: Immigration, Utah

DOJ Release: Lawsuit Filed Vs. Arizona Over Immigration Law

4:37 pm EST July 6th, 2010 | News | 20 Comments

eric holder Here is the federal government’s position on the issue.

The Department of Justice challenged the state of Arizona’s recently passed immigration law, S.B. 1070, in federal court today.

In a brief filed in the District of Arizona, the Department said S.B. 1070 unconstitutionally interferes with the federal government’s authority to set and enforce immigration policy, explaining that ‘the Constitution and federal law do not permit the development of a patchwork of state and local immigration policies throughout the country.’ A patchwork of state and local policies would seriously disrupt federal immigration enforcement. Having enacted its own immigration policy that conflicts with federal immigration law, Arizona ‘crossed a constitutional line.’

The Department’s brief said that S.B. 1070 will place significant burdens on federal agencies, diverting their resources away from high-priority targets, such as aliens implicated in terrorism, drug smuggling, and gang activity, and those with criminal records. The law’s mandates on Arizona law enforcement will also result in the harassment and detention of foreign visitors and legal immigrants, as well as U.S. citizens, who cannot readily prove their lawful status.

In declarations filed with the brief, Arizona law enforcement officials, including the Chiefs of Police of Phoenix and Tucson, said that S.B. 1070 will hamper their ability to effectively police their communities. The chiefs said that victims of or witnesses to crimes would be less likely to contact or cooperate with law enforcement officials and that implementation of the law would require them to reassign officers from critical areas such as violent crimes, property crimes, and home invasions.

The Department filed the suit after extensive consultation with Arizona officials, law enforcement officers and groups, and civil rights advocates. The suit was filed on behalf of the Department of Justice, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Department of State, which share responsibilities in administering federal immigration law.

‘Arizonans are understandably frustrated with illegal immigration, and the federal government has a responsibility to comprehensively address those concerns,’ Attorney General Holder said. ‘But diverting federal resources away from dangerous aliens such as terrorism suspects and aliens with criminal records will impact the entire country’s safety. Setting immigration policy and enforcing immigration laws is a national responsibility. Seeking to address the issue through a patchwork of state laws will only create more problems than it solves.’

Topic: Arizona, Immigration