Month: May 2011

Comment worth noting: Send Refugee Report to your Congressman

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Here is a comment from Gary Henderson.   Mr. Henderson says he is sending the Center for Immigration Studies report that I just mentioned in my previous post to his Congressman.  That is a good idea for all of you who have asked what you can do.   And, just do it whether you have a receptive Congressman or not—send it to your US Senators as well!

I am forwarding your post and Mr. Barnett’s report to my Congressman, Jeb Hensarling. Jeb is an economist and is joined at the hip with Paul Ryan.

In my exchanges with Mr. Hensarling I find that he is genuine and caring about the real concerns of the American people, but his demanding work on the budget takes so much of his time that there is little left to get into the fine details of the enormous problems that immigration forces upon us. I will use this opportunity to fill him in and hope that he will be able to use this information in deciding budget-cutting moves.

I have been heavily involved with illegal immigration on the Texas/Mexican border for more than five years now. Yet, until a relative short time ago I had no idea about the tremendous problems that the Refugee and Asylum “business” has caused dozens of towns and communities, often without their permission or control.

I came upon the Refugee Resettlement Watch site by accident, became an instant avid fan, and am rewarded daily by the insightful, pertinent and informative material that has been so revealing to me.

Thank you for exposing the seedy elements of what, on the surface, appears to be a compassionate effort driven by purely egalitarion motives. Nothing could be farther from the truth, and the same usual suspects are embedded in the czarist activities in our own government, the ruthless Soros organization, our manipulative State Department and the hate-America Cartel that dominates the United Nations.

Citizen Of The USA-Texas

CIS Report: A system badly in need of review

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Just in time for the State Department’s annual review of the size and scope of the refugee program (here), the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) has released a background report by CIS fellow and refugee program expert, Don Barnett.

Barnett calls the program out of control, rife with fraud, and a channel for terrorism into American communities:

One has to be careful when trying to explain the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP). Too much truth and in too much detail leaves those unfamiliar with the program looking at you like you are crazy. Among those unfamiliar with the topic — and therefore unable to completely process and act on information about it — are most of the political elite, especially Congress.

A wide-ranging review is needed of this costly and out-of-control system. It has failed refugees, both by diverting limited resources from overseas assistance and by the sheer neglect of those resettled in the United States by their “sponsors.” The program is rife with fraud, profitable for hundreds of “non-profit” organizations, and is a potential channel for terrorism into American communities.

Barnett and CIS call for a full review of the program (remember Samantha Power was supposed to be doing that in the White House, but nothing has been forthcoming in more than a year).

Among the findings (read them all!) are these that we at RRW find of particular interest because we have seen the problem so frequently:

U.S. Taxpayers Without Borders. The U.S. welfare system is a global magnet, which has been instrumentalized by the international refugee industry. The use of welfare, subsidized housing, Medicaid, and other programs is staggering. Including the cost of ongoing welfare — which is permanent for many refugees — easily raises the cost of the domestic resettlement program to 10 times the official estimates of $1.1 billion annually.

Exploitation for Profit. Refugee resettlement is very profitable for some non-profits. Religious organizations and NGOs involved in the program consistently refuse to commit any of their own resources for the resettlement effort. Instead, these organizations have turned to the refugee program to generate an income stream, abandoning traditional charitable works that do not pay. Most of the second- and third-tier refugee organizations receiving contracts and grants today are run by former refugees themselves, which has put the program on a perpetual growth trajectory.

American Community Impact. Some American towns have been overwhelmed by the arrival of refugees. At no point are these communities consulted. The closed loop of the U.N., the State Department, and NGOs leaves citizens with no voice in events that affect their communities.

Non-Assimilation. The USRAP is increasingly bringing in groups that have stated openly they do not intend to assimilate into American culture. Even those groups with good intentions are coming from cultures so diverse that often little progress is made in assimilation after many years.

Abandonment upon Arrival. Despite PR about supporting refugees, NGOs routinely abandon their charges after four months or less, moving on to the next, more profitable, cycle of recent admissions. NGOs expect the welfare system to take care of refugees.

Please read Mr. Barnett’s entire report and then please, even if you only say a few words, go here and find out how to comment on the refugee program for FY 2012 using some of the points in the CIS backgrounder and some of your own observations and ideas.

I don’t think those who administer the program have ever heard much from average citizens who disagree with how the program has been run for the last 30 years!   I know there are people who have been involved in the program for a long time, and who know there are huge problems, but are in no position to be critical, so it’s up to you!   The deadline for commenting is May 12th!


p.s.  Please also be sure to copy your comments to your Congressman and US Senators because few of them fully understand the program and its impact.

The “magic” of Riverside Plaza

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Riverside Plaza is the 1300-unit apartment building in a crime-ridden section of Minneapolis that is about to get a $65 million government gift towards a makeover.  It’s also the center of the Somali “community,” and it’s privately owned.  Privately owned yet taxpayers are footing most of the bill for the “public housing” wreck?  Is this magic or what?

From The Republic:

That vitality is why the federal government and others are plowing $65 million into Riverside to address leaky pipes, moldy ceilings, outdated utilities and the general battering of nearly four decades of operation.

[….]

Riverside’s renovation is part of a $132 million refinancing package assembled by the federal government, the city of Minneapolis and more than 14 other public and private sources. Sherman Associates, the company that owns the 11-building campus, is contributing $3 million to the project.

Big whup!  Sherman Associates, the owners, will be putting up $3 million.   Sounds fishy, Sherman must be politically well-connected [I hope not to former governor Tim Pawlenty!]

More magic?   Half of the apartments are government subsidized.

Mixing the market-rate and subsidized units together never panned out, as the federal funding required the units to be separated, and over time Riverside became something very different. Today, about half of Riverside’s 1,303 units are government-subsidized and half are market-rate. The more than 4,500 tenants also make the complex unique: about 70 percent are Somalis, 14 percent are Ethiopians and nearly 10 percent are Vietnamese.

No!  here is the real “magic” of Riverside Plaza!

“It works really, really well as villages within a city,” she [director of the tenant’s association] said. “If you live here, you can be with your own folks, speaking your own language. … And I think that’s the magic of the place.”

Yup, that’s it, no need for the American melting pot—just huddle with your own kind, speak your own language and create ethnic enclaves within American cities.   That is magic alright.

Texas food stamp fraud investigation has a new partner

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Another big immigrant food stamp fraud arrest happened this week after a grand jury indicted three in Brownsville, Texas.  This is the first case I’ve seen that was investigated with the help of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Homeland Security.  Usually only the Dept. of Agriculture is involved.

From MMDnewswire:

BROWNSVILLE, Texas (MMD Newswire) April 29, 2011 — The owner of a local dollar supermarket and two of his employees were arrested on Tuesday, after a federal grand jury indicted the three men for food-stamp fraud, and other charges. The arrests were announced by U.S. Attorney José Angel Moreno, Southern District of Texas. The investigation is being conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Office of Inspector General.

Parviz Sheikh Rezaei, 55, owner of Pariz Dollar Supermarket in Brownsville, Texas, was arrested April 26 on the following charges: fraud under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly known as food-stamp fraud, wire fraud; money laundering; money structuring; and operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business. Gabriel Garza and Juan David Fernandez, employees of Pariz Dollar Supermarket, were also arrested on Tuesday for food stamp fraud. All three defendants appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Felix Recio on April 26 and have been ordered temporarily detained until their arraignment April 29,. at which time the issue of bond will be decided.

Another report at KRGV-TV tells us they ripped off American taxpayers and poor people to the tune of $4 million, that’s one of the largest thefts I’ve seen to date.

Parviz Rezaei, Gabriel Garza and Juan Fernandez have been indicted on 45 counts of taking nearly $4 million from the federal government.

Federal agents arrested them Tuesday at a grocery store called Paraiz Supermarket in Cameron Park.

Federal documents claim Rezaei owns two Cameron Park stores and that he, along with his two workers, would trade cash for the food stamps. They allegedly would give the recipients money and charge a 23 percent handling fee then charge the federal government as if they were buying food.  [Heck, these guys weren’t so greedy, in most cases the ‘take’ is 50 percent.—ed]

Wonder what country they were transmitting money (redistributing wealth) to?   I gotta hand it to the Obama Administration these food stamp fraud busts have really been picking up lately.