FAIRUS.org
On Saturday, March 7, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) spoke to a group of legal and illegal aliens, criticizing law enforcement operations conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as "un-American." (Fox News, March 18, 2009; See Fox News video here). Pelosi made the comments at an event organized by Congressman Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) as part of his nationwide tour to promote amnesty for millions of illegal aliens. (See FAIR's Legislative Update, March 2, 2009).
asking President Obama to "stop the immigration raids and [end] deportations...." (Fox News, March 18, 2009). Both Gutierrez' and Pelosi's support for ending the enforcement of immigration laws comes as the unemployment rate for American citizens and legal immigrants continues to climb, with the most recent numbers putting the rate at more than eight percent. (Bureau of Labor Statistics).
While Pelosi's comments sparked outrage from many Americans, her comments are entirely consistent with the steps Congress and the Obama Administration have already taken, many unnoticed by the media, to dismantle some of the most successful immigration enforcement programs. These actions include:
- Delaying the requirement that federal contractors who receive taxpayer funded contracts use the E-Verify program to ensure that these contractors are hiring American workers instead of illegal aliens. (The Washington Post, January 30, 2009).
- Allowing 300,000 jobs created by the Stimulus bill to go to illegal aliens by stripping a long-term E-verify extension from the final version of the bill. The House-passed bill included a five-year extension but it was stripped out of the final version of the bill that President Obama signed into law. (FAIR Legislative Update, February 17, 2009).
- Suspending worksite enforcement which holds employers accountable if they hire illegal aliens. After ICE arrested 28 illegal aliens in a Bellingham, Washington plant, DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano launched a review of ICE saying she wanted "to get to the bottom of this." ICE agents were acting on information obtained after a lawful arrest but the Obama Administration's investigation is preventing ICE from following good leads and preventing crimes, even when that crime involves stealing the identity of an American citizen or legal immigrant. (The Associated Press, February 25, 2009).
- Holding hearings on the 287(g) program and suggesting that the program should only be used to target enforcement at violent criminal felons. By limiting the effectiveness of this program in this way, Congress is refusing to enforce the law when it comes to many illegal alien including non-violent felons. (FAIR Legislative Update, March 9, 2009).
- Blocking a long-term E-Verify extension from being included in the Omnibus Approps bill. The Senate rejected the Sessions' amendment that would have extended E-Verify for 5 years by using procedural tactics to table or "kill" the amendment. (Senate Roll Call Vote #93, 111th Congress, 1st Session, March 10, 2009)(a "yea" vote is a vote against the amendment).
Meanwhile, on the legislative front, the Obama Administration is signaling its willingness to move amnesty legislation forward this fall, a commitment that was reinforced during a meeting with members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. CQ Today reports that the failed legislation from 2007 is expected to serve as the "blueprint." (CQ Today, March 19, 2009). The biggest issue left unresolved, according to Frank Sharry, head of the amnesty advocacy group "America's Voice", is what kind of guest worker programs will enable more foreign workers to enter the country in future years. (Id).
The exact timing of amnesty legislation still is uncertain. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has indicated legislation will be debated on the Senate floor this year. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has wavered in suggesting a timeline for House debate. (Id).
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The Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) is a national, nonprofit, public-interest, membership organization of concerned citizens who share a common belief that our nation's immigration policies must be reformed to serve the national interest.
FAIR seeks to improve border security, to stop illegal immigration, and to promote immigration levels consistent with the national interest-more traditional rates of about 300,000 a year.
