Day: October 25, 2010

Portland, ME immigrants, noncitizens, say it’s only fair they should be able to vote

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

……and vote for Democrats!

I hope the big immigraton control groups like FAIR and NumbersUSA are on this case.  On Tuesday, November 2nd, voters in Portland, Maine will vote on whether noncitizens will be allowed to vote in local elections.

From an AP story at the Lewiston Sun Journal (where they too have a stake in the outcome as regular readers know):

PORTLAND (AP) — Like his neighbors, Claude Rwaganje pays taxes on his income and taxes on his cars. His children have gone to Portland’s public schools. He’s interested in the workings of Maine’s largest city, which he has called home for 13 years.

There’s one vital difference, though: Rwaganje isn’t a U.S. citizen and isn’t allowed to vote on those taxes or on school issues. That may soon change.

Portland residents will vote Nov. 2 on a proposal to give legal residents who are not U.S. citizens the right to vote in local elections, joining places like San Francisco and Chicago that have already loosened the rules or are considering it.

 Opponents say:  become citizens!

Opponents of the measure say immigrants already have an avenue to cast ballots — by becoming citizens. Allowing noncitizens to vote dilutes the meaning of citizenship, they say, adding that it could lead to fraud and unfairly sway elections.

Illiterate Somali says:  I want to vote for Democrats

He has been here for 18 years (since he was 22 years old), but can’t speak enough English, and hasn’t become a citizen!

The Maine League of Young Voters, which spearheaded the drive to force the question on the ballot, estimates there are 5,000 to 7,500 immigrants in Portland, roughly half of whom are not U.S. citizens. They come from more than 100 countries, with the two largest groups from Somalia and Latin America.

On a recent day in a small lunchroom at the Al-Amin Halal Market, a group of Somali men ate lunch and talked in their native language. A sign advertised the day’s offerings, including hilib ari (goat), bariis (rice) and baasto (spaghetti).

Abdirizak Daud, 40, moved to Minneapolis 18 years ago before coming to Portland in 2006. He hasn’t been able to find a job. Some of his nine children have attended Portland schools, and he’d like to have a say in who’s looking over the school system and the city, he said.

But between his limited English and the financial demands, Daud hasn’t been able to become a citizen.

“I like the Democrats. I want to vote for Democrats, but I don’t have citizenship,” he said.

As the Rolling Stones song goes, you can’t always get what you want (even in America)!  Well, at least I hope that is the case!

Endnote:  Be sure to read the comments at the Sun Journal.   As we have often noted, comments from Lewiston and Auburn are generally lively.

Canada’s American actor “refugee,” one Canadian’s opinion

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

This is a short follow-up to my post of last night about American actor in trouble with the law in the US, Randy Quaid, seeking refugee status in Canada.  While reading another article on the controversial issue of asylum seekers seeing Canada as their “sugar daddy,” I noted this comment from reader ‘let me tell you how it is:‘

Look at the hilarious spectacle of what American actor Randy Quaid and his wife are doing in Vancouver with claiming refugee status. This American with US arrest warrants is showing what a farce and how Canadians are such gullible suckers for any hard-luck story.

He is likely just getting free publicity for some upcoming movies he’s releasing or product he’s peddling.

Only a Canadian would take seriously this claim from an American unemployed class c actor with obvious mental health issues of paranoia.

That a IRB judge wouldn’t immediately deport him to face his US arrest warrants reveals what a farce the system is. The judge billing at $350 and hour will now have to figure out what to do with this clown and fill all the paperwork out. Meanwhile American Randy and his wife get free money and free health care for up to 2 years.

Surprise, surprise!  Not all Canadians are so “welcoming.”

Update on those Somali brothers who ran Michigan food stamp scam

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

I first told you about this story in August, here. 

What interests me about the news about their guilty plea a week ago is that this food stamp scam story went beyond local news outlets.   I’ve been following these cases for several years and they rarely go beyond local newspapers or local TV stations.  This story is at Business Week and I’ve seen it elsewhere as well.

Two brothers from Somalia who were accused of $400,000 in food stamp fraud and of illegally transferring money overseas from their western Michigan store pleaded guilty Monday to federal charges, prosecutors said.

Mohamed and Omar Sufi, owners of the Halal Depot store in Grand Rapids, redeemed electronic food stamps for cash and nonfood items, taking 30 percent commissions, the government said. The men were accused of taking up to 50 percent from benefits under the Women, Infants and Children programs.

Prosecutors said the brothers wired thousands of dollars through an unlicensed money transfer business known as a “hawala.” The money went to the Middle East and Africa, and the men charged a commission of 6 percent to 7 percent, prosecutors said.

The brothers deliberately kept transactions below $10,000 so that financial institutions would not file currency transactions reports to the Internal Revenue Service, the men admitted in their plea agreement.

When those Somali ‘voters’ in Columbus, Ohio whined about not being able to easily send money to Somalia, they have only their fellow Somalis to blame for restrictions.  However, I don’t know why they are complaining.  This case demonstrates it’s pretty easy for Somalis to wire money—-your tax dollars—to the rest of the world.

For new readers: We have admitted well over 100,000 Somali refugees to the US.   To check out the numbers visit this post, probably our most widely read post over the last few years.   In FY2010 which ended September 30th the US State Department resettled 4,884 Somalis (here) to towns near you.

Also, after being closed for nearly two years, the US State Department is on the verge of resuming the fraud-ridden family reunification program that admitted as many as 36,000 Somalis fraudulently to the US between 2003 and 2008.  See the latest on new regulations, here.