Trump is killing temporary refugee program, or is he?

05/13/2018 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

“I think we should fold all of the TPS people that have been here for a considerable period of time and find a way for them to be [on] a path to citizenship.”

(White House Chief of Staff John Kelly)

From time to time over the years, I’ve reported on the ridiculously named “Temporary Protected Status” immigration program that has allowed many migrants (who were likely already in the country illegally from TPS-designated countries) to stay in the US and work, get drivers licenses and probably thus vote! (Designated usually in the wake of a now long forgotten natural disaster.)

trump wall thumbs up — How much is Trump going to give away to get the wall?

As The Hill reports, the Trump Administration is ordering that most (some of whom have been here for nearly 2 decades) begin to pack their bags.
But here we learn it is all apparently part of the ‘art of the deal,’ and that perhaps the administration will find them and the ‘Dreamers’ a path to citizenship if they get a few things, including the wall, but only if Congress actually passes a law—a comprehensive bill (ugh! it’s back!).
Can’t we for once address each immigration program on its merits or demerits! And are we really going to give legal status to hundreds of thousands who are here illegally?

Continue reading →

EU trying (in vain?) to get new agreement on migrant redistribution in Europe; fear increase in populism

04/27/2018 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

“If we don’t get a deal by the summer we will lose credibility vis-à-vis public opinion and we cannot afford that because it would fuel support for populist and extremist parties across the country.”

(Unnamed diplomat from a frontline country)

Politico Europe is reporting that the European Union is working to get in place (by June) a new plan to redistribute migrants from frontline countries, but those frontline countries are not happy.

Invasion of Europe news….

Of course no where is it mentioned that they must first stop the boats arriving from North Africa (European equivalent of BUILD THE WALL)!

Continue reading “EU trying (in vain?) to get new agreement on migrant redistribution in Europe; fear increase in populism” →

Ridiculous comments made on steps of Supreme Court yesterday

04/26/2018 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Ridiculous and ungrateful I should say….

Supreme court props — Setting up their props at the Supreme Court yesterday. Don’t you wonder who pays for stunts like this!

(See my post yesterday about the Supreme Court hearing on the travel ban.)
Now, look at this headline from Talking Points Memo:

‘They Bomb Us, Then Ban Us:’ The Scene Outside SCOTUS Before The Travel Ban Case

And, then the reporter goes on to report from migrants to the US who would be better served putting their heads down and working hard to become good and grateful Americans.
Continue reading “Ridiculous comments made on steps of Supreme Court yesterday” →

Supremes to hear Trump travel ban case today, fears Trump will win

04/25/2018 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

According the NPR people lined up as early as this past Sunday in order to get a coveted seat for the hearing on the President’s travel ban.

muslim ban signs — Photo from a 2017 demonstration: https://www.timesheadline.com/world/us-supreme-court-cancels-trumps-muslim-ban-hearing-8776.html

National Public Radio‘s Nina Totenberg has a lengthy, pretty straightforward, story. Here is a bit of it:

The Supreme Court’s Grand Finale: Trump’s Travel Ban

The Trump administration’s travel ban finally reaches the U.S. Supreme Court Wednesday, posing enormous questions involving the structure of the American government and the values of the country.

At issue is the third version of the ban — which the president has complained is a “watered down” version. The court allowed it to go into effect while the case was litigated, but the lower courts have ruled all three versions either violate federal law or are unconstitutional.

Like the earlier two bans, version 3.0 bars almost all travelers from six mainly Muslim countries, and it adds a ban on travelers from North Korea and government officials from Venezuela.

supreme-court-2017

The questions in the case are the stuff of history:

~Can the courts even review a presidential order on immigration that invokes national security?

~Did the president violate the immigration law’s command against discrimination based on nationality?

~And does the executive order violate the Constitution’s ban on religious discrimination?

The travel-ban argument will be the last of the term. And the importance of the argument is not lost on the court. For the first time since the same-sex-marriage arguments in 2015, the court is allowing same-day distribution of the session’s audio. Nonetheless, people started lining up at 7 a.m. Sunday in hopes of snagging a seat Wednesday.

The court itself will be under extreme pressure. There are only about two months left in the term and an unusually large number of cases yet to be decided.

One key question is this one:

Can the court consider Trump’s anti-Muslim rhetoric?

See more of the NPR story here. Legal beagles will find it interesting.

Then see that the Leftwing Slate predicts:

Trump’s Going to Win

Why the Supreme Court will probably uphold the president’s travel ban.

A decision isn’t expected until June.
For more background visit my ‘Supreme Court’ category by clicking here. Don’t miss my post of two days ago, here.

Feds find network bringing Syrians illegally across southern border

04/20/2018 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

I’ve written many times over the years about how the world (not just Mexicans and Central Americans) is arriving at our southern border to seek asylum (if caught). I’ve mentioned Somalis and Iraqis on other occasions and now it is Syrians according to a report in the Washington Times (hat tip: Joanne).
You might want to visit a post I wrote in 2011 in which I suggest the illegals know how to use the system and ask for asylum because they were taught the system. I believe there exists a cabal of immigration lawyers working closely with our usual gang of NGOs facilitating the process.
Washington Times:

The Treasury Department slapped sanctions Wednesday on a Syrian man and his criminal syndicate, blaming them for smuggling “hundreds” of illegal immigrants from Syria and Lebanon into Mexico and then helping them to jump the border into the U.S.

trump and sessions — I’m not one of those wishing to oust Attorney General Sessions. This is the kind of work I want him to do. How we handle immigration is more significant for America’s future then if he was embroiled in the Russian meddling non-issue.

Nasif Barakat and his syndicate, which authorities labeled the Barakat Transnational Criminal Organization, charged about $20,000 to complete the smuggling. The money paid for bribes and for fake documents, including false European passports, to help illegal immigrants hide their identities. The fees also covered transportation from Syria through other Middle Eastern countries to South and Central America, the journey north through Mexico, and final help sneaking into the U.S.

[….]

“The day I was sworn in as attorney general, President Trump sent me an Executive Order to dismantle transnational criminal organizations,” said Attorney General Jeff Sessions. “Many of these organizations use human smugglers to bring people across our borders with little regard to their safety or our national sovereignty.”